Metal detecting rule layers
Quick answer: a rule applies because of jurisdiction and managing authority, not simply because a place is publicly accessible. The national directory shows the rule layers currently used across all completed state datasets.
How to read these rules: detector use, digging, target recovery, artifact protection, permits and designated zones can be controlled by different provisions. A restrictive recovery rule is not automatically rewritten as a detector-possession ban, and an access permit is not automatically treated as recovery authorization.
Metal detecting law questions
Is metal detecting legal on all public land in the United States?
No. Public access does not create metal-detecting or target-recovery permission. The controlling rule depends on the land manager, property purpose, detector-use rule, digging/recovery restrictions, protected-resource law and any permit or designated-zone requirement.
Does a recreation, hunting or access permit authorize metal detecting?
Not unless the controlling rule expressly says it does. Access credentials and detector/recovery authorization are treated as separate legal questions in this database.
Can a map pin prove where metal detecting is permitted?
No. A map pin is only a public visitor/access reference point. It is never treated as a property boundary, detecting zone, archaeological location or legal permission boundary.
How many controlling rule layers are listed for the United States?
523 current rule layers are represented on this page. Each rule entry identifies its managing authority, status, official source, verification grade and verification date.
AEDC WMA and Woods Reservoir Refuge
The current AEDC WMA and Woods Reservoir Refuge page expressly lists metal detectors or digging among prohibited activities.
Important exceptions: Military closures and unexploded-ordnance hazards also apply.
Official source — www.tn.gov · Verified
AGFC-owned lakes listed for the WMA/Lake Conservation Permit
The WMA/Lake Conservation Permit is an access credential for listed AGFC-owned lakes when a user lacks a qualifying Arkansas hunting/fishing license. The current source does not convert that permit into authorization to use a detector, dig or recover property.
Important exceptions: Lake Conway has a specific item-removal suspension and is handled separately. State archaeological and submerged-antiquity laws also remain applicable.
Official source — www.agfc.com · Supporting official source — law.justia.com · Verified
Alabama Forever Wild Nature Preserves / Recreation Areas
Forever Wild provides public recreation and hunting on many tracts, but public/hunting access is not treated as recreational metal-detector or excavation permission.
Important exceptions: WMA-associated Forever Wild tracts inherit WMA rules; sensitive natural/cultural resources can create stricter restrictions.
Official source — www.alabamaforeverwild.com · Supporting official source — www.alabamaforeverwild.com · Verified
Alabama Historical Commission historic sites
Historic-resource status and AHC management make artifact/recovery sensitivity material; absent a current site-specific detector permission statement, recreational detecting is not inferred.
Important exceptions: Old Cahawba has an explicit no-detecting/no-digging rule and is separated into its own rule.
Official source — ahc.alabama.gov · Supporting official source — ahc.alabama.gov · Verified
Alabama NPS-administered national historic trail corridors
A trail designation is not a single land-ownership boundary. NPS detector rules apply on NPS-administered land, while other segments require their own land-manager rules.
Important exceptions: Do not project NPS prohibitions or permissions onto non-NPS parcels merely because the route is a National Historic Trail.
Official source — www.nps.gov · Supporting official source — www.ecfr.gov · Verified
Alabama Special Opportunity Areas
SOA access is purpose-specific and controlled; current program access does not itself establish recreational metal-detecting permission.
Important exceptions: Confirm exact managing-landowner and ground-disturbance rules before detector use.
Official source — www.outdooralabama.com · Supporting official source — www.outdooralabama.com · Verified
Alabama State Parks
Current Alabama State Parks guidance says metal detectors are prohibited on the beach or any area of a park without prior approval from the park manager.
Important exceptions: Approval is property/manager specific; the database never treats a park listing or beach access as standing detector permission.
Official source — www.alapark.com · Supporting official source — www.alapark.com · Verified
Alabama State Public Fishing Lakes
The fishing-lake program publishes fishing, launch, permit and operating rules but the reviewed statewide page does not establish general recreational metal-detector permission.
Important exceptions: Fishing/launch permits do not authorize detector use, digging or recovery. Current lake manager/site confirmation is required.
Official source — www.outdooralabama.com · Verified
Alabama Wildlife Management Areas
Current WMA materials establish hunting/recreation access and WMA-specific regulations, but the reviewed current sources do not establish a statewide recreational metal-detector permission pathway.
Important exceptions: WMA hunting permission is not detector, excavation, artifact-collection, or landowner permission. Federal/Forever Wild overlays can impose additional rules.
Official source — outdooralabama.com · Supporting official source — www.outdooralabama.com · Verified
Alaska
Alaska State Parks explicitly states that metal detectors may not be used in a state park. Natural, historical and archaeological objects are also protected from removal or disturbance.
Important exceptions: Do not treat campground, marine-park, trail, recreation-area or historic-site access as detector permission.
Official source — dnr.alaska.gov · Supporting official source — dnr.alaska.gov · Verified
Alaska
Alaska special areas protect fish and wildlife habitat. Activities that alter habitat or disturb fish or wildlife beyond lawful hunting, trapping and fishing can require a Special Area Permit; ordinary public access is not detector-excavation permission.
Important exceptions: Private inholdings can occur within mapped boundaries; the June 5, 2026 boundary changes for several refuges and critical habitat areas must be respected.
Official source — www.adfg.alaska.gov · Supporting official source — www.adfg.alaska.gov · Verified
Alaska
Some low-impact uses are generally allowed on ordinary DMLW public-domain land, but that framework does not apply to state parks, special-use land or lands managed by other agencies. Prospecting or recovery must also respect mineral rights, claims and protected cultural resources.
Important exceptions: Confirm current land ownership and any mineral claim, special-use designation, water/fish habitat permit or additional authorization before disturbing ground.
Official source — dnr.alaska.gov · Supporting official source — dnr.alaska.gov · Verified
Alaska
Alaska special-use and legislatively designated lands can impose restrictions beyond generally allowed uses to protect scenic, historic, archaeological, biological or recreational values.
Important exceptions: Mining and recreational mining can be restricted or prohibited in particular special-use areas; check the exact decision and current map.
Official source — dnr.alaska.gov · Supporting official source — dnr.alaska.gov · Verified
Alaska
Alaska provides specific recreational mining areas and public mining pathways. Those allowances are location- and method-specific and do not authorize trespass, archaeological disturbance or unrestricted excavation outside the designated area.
Important exceptions: Nome beach/mining boundaries, private uplands, suction dredging, fish habitat and mining-claim rules can change what is allowed.
Official source — dnr.alaska.gov · Supporting official source — dnr.alaska.gov · Verified
Alaska
BLM Alaska manages tens of millions of surface acres, but public access does not remove mining-claim, cultural-resource, special-designation or closure restrictions. Confirm the exact parcel and activity before detector recovery.
Important exceptions: Historic and archaeological objects are protected; mining/prospecting may require claim, permit or plan review depending on activity and location.
Official source — www.blm.gov · Supporting official source — www.blm.gov · Verified
Alaska
Alaska BLM special designations are not treated as ordinary unrestricted detector-recovery land. Conservation, wilderness-study, river, trail and petroleum-reserve rules can materially restrict surface disturbance and resource collection.
Important exceptions: The August 2026 BLM inventory shows 0 Alaska BLM wilderness areas and 1 WSA; Alaska also has the Steese NCA, Iditarod NHT, six BLM Wild and Scenic Rivers and White Mountains NRA.
Official source — www.blm.gov · Supporting official source — www.blm.gov · Verified
Alaska
Some Alaska NPS-listed identities are affiliated or partner-managed rather than a single block of NPS-administered land. Apply federal detector restrictions only to the actual NPS-administered parcel and use the controlling owner elsewhere.
Important exceptions: Do not convert an NPS listing or interpretive affiliation into a blanket NPS ownership boundary.
Official source — www.nps.gov · Supporting official source — www.nps.gov · Verified
Alaska
The Alaska Region has two National Forests. Recreational mineral collection can include metal-detector use on suitable lands, but archaeological/historic resources, mining claims, wilderness/special areas and local forest orders control.
Important exceptions: Do not search for or remove archaeological/historic resources; activities that become mining or cause greater disturbance may require separate authorization.
Official source — www.fs.usda.gov · Supporting official source — www.fs.usda.gov · Verified
Alaska
The Chena Project contains USACE lands and locally operated recreation areas. Public recreation does not itself establish detector recovery permission; Title 36, project rules and the actual recreation manager control.
Important exceptions: Chena Lakes Recreation Area is operated by Fairbanks North Star Borough; closures and special-use permits can apply elsewhere in the project.
Official source — www.poa.usace.army.mil · Supporting official source — www.poa.usace.army.mil · Verified
Alaska
FNSB says borough land is generally open for casual low-impact use unless stated otherwise, while activities exceeding casual use can require a license or agreement. Detector digging is therefore not assumed to be authorized merely because hiking or other casual recreation is open.
Important exceptions: Park/facility rules and site closures can be stricter than general borough-land casual-use guidance.
Official source — www.fnsb.gov · Supporting official source — www.fnsb.gov · Verified
Allagash Wilderness Waterway
Allagash Wilderness Waterway Rule 2.18 expressly prohibits metal detectors; artifacts in the Restricted Zone may not be disturbed, removed or possessed except under specified written research/preservation/education authorization.
Important exceptions: No ordinary recreational metal-detecting pathway.
Official source — www.maine.gov · Supporting official source — www.maine.gov · Verified
Allatoona Lake designated metal-detector areas
Allatoona Lake publishes a project-specific metal-detector policy identifying selected beach, shoreline, road and ramp areas with seasonal or year-round access conditions.
Important exceptions: The linked detector policy is project-specific and must be rechecked before travel. Use is limited to the named zone and timing; protected artifacts/resources remain controlled by federal law.
Official source — www.sam.usace.army.mil · Supporting official source — www.sam.usace.army.mil · Verified
Allegheny National Forest
current data does not infer blanket Forest Service detector/recovery permission. Exact land status, current orders, cultural-resource protections and recovery method must be confirmed with the responsible ranger district.
Important exceptions: Private/inholdings, special sites and cultural-resource areas can have different controlling rules.
Official source — www.fs.usda.gov · Supporting official source — www.fs.usda.gov · Verified
Apalachicola National Forest developed recreation sites
Current Forest Service metal-detecting policy says recreational detector use for modern lost items is generally allowed on National Forest System lands subject to archaeological/historic and resource protections, and commonly requires no permit in developed campgrounds, swimming beaches and picnic areas. This Florida completion pass grants an allowed decision only where the current Florida forest site identity clearly fits that developed category; primitive/hunt-camp/landing or sensitive geologic sites remain publishable confirmation-required decisions rather than forced permissions.
Important exceptions: No archaeological/historic-resource searching or disturbance; treasure-trove searches require separate authorization; posted closures and site-specific forest orders control. A recreation-page map point is never a legal detecting boundary. Primitive hunt camps/landings and sensitive interpretive sites require local site confirmation before travel.
Official source — www.fs.usda.gov · Supporting official source — www.fs.usda.gov · Verified
Appalachian National Scenic Trail — Georgia segment mixed management
The NPS identifies the Appalachian Trail as jointly managed by the National Park Service, U.S. Forest Service, state agencies and partners. Detector rules therefore depend on the exact parcel and land manager; no single statewide trail permission is inferred.
Important exceptions: NPS-owned park-area segments are subject to the federal detector prohibition; Forest Service segments may have different developed-recreation rules; other ownerships can differ again.
Official source — www.nps.gov · Supporting official source — www.nps.gov · Verified
Appalachian National Scenic Trail in New Hampshire
The NPS state listing identifies multi-agency management; apply 36 CFR §2.1 only to NPS-administered parcels and the controlling rule to every other parcel.
Important exceptions: No blanket NPS ownership or blanket detector permission is inferred.
Official source — www.nps.gov · Supporting official source — www.ecfr.gov · Verified
Arizona
Arizona Administrative Code R12-8-103 prohibits unauthorized removal or use of archaeological, geological and historical objects in state parks; Arizona law separately protects archaeological and paleontological resources on state-controlled land. No blanket recreational metal-detecting permission is established by the current statewide rules.
Important exceptions: A park may impose additional closures or conditions. Do not dig, remove geological/historical material, or target archaeological/paleontological resources without affirmative authority. Confirm the exact park and activity before detecting or recovering a target.
Official source — apps.azsos.gov · Supporting official source — azstateparks.com · Verified
Arizona
Current Article 8 rules make wildlife areas and other Department-managed property subject to posted and rule-based restrictions on the timing, type and duration of public activities. Wildlife-viewing, hunting or fishing access does not itself establish metal-detecting, excavation or object-recovery permission.
Important exceptions: Ownership varies for some cooperative wildlife areas. Confirm the underlying parcel manager, current posted restrictions, and any cultural-resource constraints before detector use or recovery.
Official source — apps.azsos.gov · Supporting official source — www.azgfd.com · Verified
Arizona
On appropriate BLM public lands, lawful detector use may exist for modern items or other lawful purposes, but cultural/archaeological/historic resources may not be collected and special designations, closures, claims, wilderness/resource protections and site-specific rules can restrict detecting or excavation.
Important exceptions: National monuments and other special conservation designations can have stricter collection rules. Verify the precise BLM unit, land status, active mining claims, closure orders and intended target/recovery method before use.
Official source — www.blm.gov · Supporting official source — www.blm.gov · Verified
Arizona
The BLM visitor rule for the represented historic/cultural site expressly prohibits metal-detector use and also protects historic artifacts from removal.
Important exceptions: This is site-specific and should not be generalized to every BLM acre in Arizona.
Official source — www.blm.gov · Supporting official source — www.blm.gov · Verified
Arizona
An NPS trail/program identity does not make every Arizona corridor segment NPS-owned. Apply 36 CFR 2.1 only to NPS-administered land and use the actual underlying landowner/manager rule elsewhere.
Important exceptions: Historic and archaeological resources remain protected regardless of corridor ownership. Do not infer detector permission from the trail name or public access.
Official source — www.nps.gov · Supporting official source — www.nps.gov · Verified
Arizona
National Forest access is not blanket metal-detecting or digging permission. Detector use and recovery depend on exact site status, developed recreation restrictions, archaeological/historic protections, wilderness rules, mineral rights/claims and any Forest Orders.
Important exceptions: Confirm the specific ranger district/site and current orders. Do not disturb archaeological or historic resources.
Official source — www.fs.usda.gov · Supporting official source — www.fs.usda.gov · Verified
Arizona
USACE projects are subject to 36 CFR Part 327 resource-protection rules and project-specific recreation access. Arizona Los Angeles District projects differ substantially in recreation availability, so project ownership alone is not detector permission.
Important exceptions: Whitlow Ranch has no recreation facilities; Painted Rock recreation is restricted/closed in current project information; Alamo recreation is shared with state partners. Verify the exact accessible zone and manager before detecting.
Official source — www.spl.usace.army.mil · Supporting official source — www.ecfr.gov · Verified
Arizona
ASLD states that its recreational permit is limited to specified activities such as hiking, picnicking, bicycling, photography, sightseeing, bird watching and geocaching. Metal detecting is not among the authorized recreational uses; Trust Land is not general public land.
Important exceptions: A recreational permit is not a mineral exploration or collection authorization. Separate land/mineral rights and permits must be obtained where applicable; cultural-resource laws and closures remain controlling.
Official source — land.az.gov · Supporting official source — land.az.gov · Verified
Arizona
The represented local agency/site expressly prohibits metal detecting in the named system or property.
Important exceptions: Apply only to the named system/site; other Arizona municipal and county lands require their own current rule check.
Official source — www.maricopacountyparks.net · Supporting official source — www.pima.gov · Verified
Arkansas Game and Fish Commission WMA/WDA directory properties
AGFC publishes a statewide WMA directory. For AGFC-owned WMAs, many visitors now need a WMA/Lake Conservation Permit or qualifying hunting/fishing license for access, effective July 1, 2026. That access credential does not itself authorize metal detecting, excavation or recovery, and partner-owned WMAs can have additional landowner rules.
Important exceptions: Ownership, access permits, closures, archaeological-resource protections and site-specific regulations must be checked before detector use. An access permit is never represented as detector authorization.
Official source — www.agfc.com · Supporting official source — www.agfc.com · Verified
Arkansas municipal/local parks represented by current official directories
Current local directories verify the identity and public-recreation role of each park. Where no current affirmative metal-detector rule was found, the database keeps a manager/site confirmation gate rather than converting silence into permission. State archaeological and property-damage rules still apply.
Important exceptions: Historic sites, battlefields, cemeteries and archaeological contexts are locator-withheld and may have stricter protections. Individual city ordinances, events and posted rules control locally.
Official source — www.fortsmithar.gov · Supporting official source — law.justia.com · Verified
Arkansas State Parks Division park and museum properties
22 CAR § 50-111 prohibits excavating for or searching by any means for minerals, organic/inorganic materials, lost articles, coins, treasures, artifacts or other materials on state park/museum properties, and prohibits removing them, without written permission from the Director of the State Parks Division.
Important exceptions: Crater of Diamonds searching and geocaching are named exceptions. Crater of Diamonds has separate equipment restrictions; its diamond-search exception is not a metal-detector permission.
Official source — codeofarrules.arkansas.gov · Supporting official source — www.arkansas.com · Verified
Arthur R. Marshall Loxahatchee National Wildlife Refuge — detector prohibition
Current FWS rules expressly prohibit metal detectors and artifact/antiquity searching on the refuge.
Important exceptions: No ordinary recreational detector exception is stated. Other refuge activities have separate designated-area rules and permits.
Official source — www.fws.gov · Verified
Assateague State Park metal detecting — seasonal ocean-side rule
Assateague State Park permits metal detectors only beginning the day after Labor Day through May 30 and only on the ocean side of the primary dune.
Important exceptions: No detecting from May 31 until the day after Labor Day unless written Park Manager permission is obtained. Holes may be only as deep as a small child’s knees and must be filled. Protected artifacts/resources remain off limits.
Official source — dnr.maryland.gov · Supporting official source — dnr.maryland.gov · Verified
Athens-Clarke County Leisure Services parks and facilities
Athens-Clarke County publishes current general park rules and facility-specific rule layers, but the reviewed sources do not establish one blanket detector-use answer for all facilities. Exact facility rules and manager confirmation must be checked before detector use or recovery.
Important exceptions: Facility-specific rules, nature/historic-resource protections, closures and posted restrictions can be stricter than general rules.
Official source — www.accgov.com · Supporting official source — www.accgov.com · Verified
Baldwin County Parks
County park access is not treated as blanket detector or excavation permission.
Important exceptions: Historic-resource properties require heightened caution and exact manager confirmation.
Official source — baldwincountyal.gov · Verified
Baltimore City Parks — named metal-detecting exclusions
Baltimore City’s permit rules specifically exclude named parks/areas from detector use. This cohort captures named park identities in the major-park inventory that fall inside that exclusion list.
Important exceptions: The broader permit program does not override these exclusions. Current supervisor closures, historic-resource protections and seasonal rules can add further restrictions.
Official source — bcrp.baltimorecity.gov · Verified
Baltimore City Parks metal detector permit program
Baltimore City Recreation and Parks operates a metal-detector permit program. The permit is personal, generally issued on a one-year rolling basis, and requires training/orientation and compliance with recovery/restoration rules.
Important exceptions: City parks are closed to metal detecting in July and August under the published permit rules; supervisors retain discretion and specified parks/areas are excluded. Athletic areas and municipal golf courses are also excluded.
Official source — bcrp.baltimorecity.gov · Verified
Baxter State Park
Baxter State Park Rule 4.10 prohibits use of metal detectors or similar devices and prohibits collection/removal of cultural objects; Rule 4.11 separately restricts removal of natural objects/materials.
Important exceptions: No ordinary recreational detector pathway.
Official source — baxterstatepark.org · Supporting official source — baxterstatepark.org · Verified
Boulder, Colorado
Boulder OSMP states a permit is required to collect cultural, historical, plant, animal or mineral specimens or related materials; collection permits are typically issued for research purposes only and collection without a permit is prohibited.
Important exceptions: Ordinary trail/open-space access does not authorize detector recovery or collection. Approved research/collection permit terms control.
Official source — bouldercolorado.gov · Supporting official source — bouldercolorado.gov · Verified
Bowling Green Parks & Recreation
Bowling Green expressly allows metal detecting in public areas of City parks, while excluding golf courses, athletic ball fields, the aquatic center, cemeteries, historical locations and any additional Director-designated areas.
Important exceptions: Detect only during daylight; obey antiquity laws; leave historical/cultural items in place and notify Parks; use only small probing tools, limit holes to six inches, restore turf, and observe playground/vegetation restrictions.
Official source — www.bgky.org · Supporting official source — www.bgky.org · Verified
Breaks Interstate Park
Because Breaks Interstate Park is not managed as an ordinary DCR Virginia State Park, its detector status must be confirmed with its exact manager rather than inferred from DCR’s State Park rule.
Important exceptions: Kentucky/Virginia interstate management and exact parcel/resource rules may overlap.
Official source — www.dcr.virginia.gov · Supporting official source — www.breakspark.com · Verified
Brevard County Parks & Recreation
Brevard County Code Sec. 78-120 prohibits removing beach sand (whether submerged or not), soil, rock, stones, plants, wood, or other materials and prohibits excavation by tool, equipment, blasting, or other means in any park, recreational facility, or department-managed land. For ordinary recreational metal detecting, this blocks dug-target recovery and material removal. The section does not separately state that merely possessing or operating a detector is prohibited, so no broader detector-use claim is inferred.
Important exceptions: No recreational excavation/material-removal exception is identified in Sec. 78-120. Environmentally Endangered Lands sanctuaries, nature/cultural sites, school joint-use properties, athletic fields, dunes, utilities, archaeology/historic resources, closures and posted site rules may impose additional restrictions. Waters or lands outside a County-managed boundary require separate jurisdiction analysis.
Official source — www.brevardclerk.us · Supporting official source — www.brevardfl.gov · Verified
Broward County Parks
The current Broward County Parks Customer Code of Conduct applies to every County park and park facility. It prohibits defacing, destroying or altering park grounds and prohibits removing, destroying, mutilating or in any manner altering landscape, expressly including lawns, shrubs, plants, flowers, sand, soil and designated habitat areas. Ordinary recreational metal-detecting recovery would require or foreseeably cause prohibited ground/sand/soil disturbance, and no general recreational detector exception was identified in the current official County sources reviewed. Accordingly this layer treats ordinary recreational detecting/recovery as prohibited unless specific lawful County authorization applies.
Important exceptions: This County rule is not applied to municipal, Florida State Park, federal or privately managed lands merely because they are geographically in Broward County. Pure non-disturbing surface scanning is not separately established here as an authorized activity. Specific County/park-management authorization or a property-specific rule may control a particular organized activity. Natural, historic, cultural, habitat and waterfront properties may have additional restrictions; public access never implies artifact recovery, shoreline disturbance or submerged-recovery rights.
Official source — www.broward.org · Supporting official source — www.broward.org · Verified
California
California State Parks protects archaeological, historical and natural resources and individual park orders can impose stricter detector restrictions. Ordinary visitor access is not treated as detector-recovery permission.
Important exceptions: Historic/archaeological objects may not be removed; natural-resource collection is limited; exact park orders and closures control.
Official source — www.parks.ca.gov · Supporting official source — govt.westlaw.com · Verified
California
The current Folsom Lake State Recreation Area posted order prohibits possession or use of metal detectors in the unit except limited transport and permit circumstances.
Important exceptions: Written authorization and posted-order exceptions control; protected resources remain off limits.
Official source — www.parks.ca.gov · Supporting official source — www.parks.ca.gov · Verified
California
Marshall Gold Discovery State Historic Park has an explicit order prohibiting possession or use of metal detectors, subject only to stated exceptions.
Important exceptions: Historic-park resource protections are especially strict; do not disturb or recover artifacts.
Official source — www.parks.ca.gov · Supporting official source — www.parks.ca.gov · Verified
California
CDFW public-use rules prohibit visitors from cutting, removing, digging into or otherwise disturbing soil, sand, gravel, rock or mineral resources except as specifically authorized.
Important exceptions: Hunting/fishing access and a Lands Pass do not authorize detector excavation or mineral collection.
Official source — wildlife.ca.gov · Supporting official source — wildlife.ca.gov · Verified
California
California marine protected areas apply site-specific take and resource-protection rules; detector recovery that would remove protected geological or cultural material is not inferred from beach access.
Important exceptions: Exact MPA classification, tide-zone ownership and local rules must be checked before any recovery activity.
Official source — wildlife.ca.gov · Supporting official source — wildlife.ca.gov · Verified
California
Metal detectors may be used as prospecting tools on suitable BLM public lands, but historic artifacts and archaeological resources are protected and special designations can be more restrictive.
Important exceptions: Developed sites, mining claims, wilderness/WSA/NCL designations, closures and cultural resources require exact confirmation.
Official source — www.blm.gov · Supporting official source — www.blm.gov · Verified
California
California BLM National Conservation Lands are special protected designations and are not treated as ordinary unrestricted detector-recovery land.
Important exceptions: Current August 2026 inventory includes 92 BLM wildernesses and 62 WSAs; cultural-resource and designation-specific rules control.
Official source — www.blm.gov · Supporting official source — www.blm.gov · Verified
California
NPS-associated trails and corridors can cross non-NPS parcels; NPS restrictions apply to NPS-administered land, while other parcels follow their controlling owner.
Important exceptions: Do not treat an entire trail corridor or multi-owner landscape as NPS-owned.
Official source — www.nps.gov · Supporting official source — www.nps.gov · Verified
California
National Wildlife Refuge public access is activity- and zone-specific. Hunting, fishing or wildlife observation access is not detector-recovery permission.
Important exceptions: Closed areas, wildlife buffers, archaeological resources and refuge-specific special-use rules control.
Official source — www.fws.gov · Supporting official source — www.fws.gov · Verified
California
Detector use on suitable National Forest System lands must respect archaeological/historic-resource protections, special-area restrictions, mining claims and local forest orders.
Important exceptions: Any activity that becomes prospecting/mining or disturbs protected resources follows separate law and authorization.
Official source — www.fs.usda.gov · Supporting official source — www.fs.usda.gov · Verified
California
USACE recreation lands are governed by Title 36 and local project rules; detector activity is not treated as blanket permission across a project.
Important exceptions: Exact park, swim beach, lease/manager and cultural-resource restrictions control.
Official source — www.spk.usace.army.mil · Supporting official source — www.ecfr.gov · Verified
California
Reclamation projects may include federal, state, local or concession-managed recreation zones. Detector use and excavation depend on the exact managing entity and protected-resource rules.
Important exceptions: Do not infer permission from reservoir access; archaeological resources and unauthorized excavation remain protected.
Official source — www.usbr.gov · Supporting official source — www.ecfr.gov · Verified
Canaveral National Seashore
Canaveral National Seashore states that federal regulations prohibit possessing or using metal-detecting devices in the park.
Important exceptions: No recreational coin-search exception is stated. Historic, archaeological, natural and other protected resources remain subject to additional federal protections.
Official source — www.nps.gov · Verified
Chatham County Parks & Recreation
Current Chatham County Parks materials establish the listed recreation properties and operational context but no systemwide metal-detector permission or prohibition was established in the reviewed current official sources. Exact site/manager confirmation is required.
Important exceptions: Nature preserves, trails, historic sites, coastal/shoreline areas, boating facilities and partner-operated properties can carry separate resource or jurisdiction rules.
Official source — parks.chathamcountyga.gov · Supporting official source — parks.chathamcountyga.gov · Verified
Chattahoochee-Oconee National Forest developed recreation sites
Forest Service guidance allows recreational searching for modern lost coins, jewelry and incidental metal items in appropriate developed campgrounds, swimming areas and picnic areas without a permit, while archaeological/historic-resource searching is prohibited or separately authorized. current data never generalizes that exception to the entire forest.
Important exceptions: Historic/archaeological resources are protected. Treasure trove, prospecting and mineral activities follow different authorities. Local orders, closures and resource protections can be stricter. Detect only inside a verified qualifying developed recreation footprint and stop if protected material is encountered.
Official source — www.fs.usda.gov · Supporting official source — www.fs.usda.gov · Verified
Cherokee National Forest
National Forest recreation access does not create blanket detector permission. Forest Service metal-detecting guidance and cultural-resource laws require site-specific screening, especially where archaeological or historic resources may be present.
Important exceptions: No archaeological/historic resource disturbance or collection is authorized by this record.
Official source — www.fs.usda.gov · Verified
City of Alexandria public property
Alexandria City Code prohibits possessing/using a metal detector to search, digging/excavating, or removing objects on City property. A narrow permission pathway exists to locate a specific item of personal property lost by the person receiving permission.
Important exceptions: Specific-lost-personal-item permission is not recreational treasure hunting permission.
Official source — www.alexandriava.gov · Supporting official source — www.alexandriava.gov · Verified
City of Asheville parks and recreation properties
Asheville publishes current park/facility listings, but no blanket recreational detector authorization was established for the researched citywide layer.
Important exceptions: Confirm exact property rules, current closures, archaeology/historic-resource safeguards, surface disturbance and recovery method before detecting.
Official source — www.ashevillenc.gov · Supporting official source — www.ashevillenc.gov · Verified
City of Atlanta parks
The City publishes a current park inventory and park-use guidance, but current data did not establish a current blanket citywide metal-detector permission or prohibition from authoritative material. Permission is therefore not inferred from public access or silence.
Important exceptions: Historic cemeteries, nature preserves, special facilities, greenspots and leased/partner property may have narrower controls. Confirm the exact park and recovery method with the responsible manager before detector use.
Official source — www.atlantaga.gov · Supporting official source — www.atlantaga.gov · Verified
City of Auburn Parks and Facilities
Municipal park access is not treated as detector or ground-disturbance permission where the current directory does not state such permission.
Important exceptions: Confirm at the facility/department level before detecting, particularly at athletic fields, landscaped parks and historic/civic spaces.
Official source — www.auburnalabama.org · Verified
City of Biloxi parks
Biloxi publishes current park identities and operating hours; those facts do not establish detector or ground-disturbance permission.
Important exceptions: Confirm current city code/site restrictions and any beach, historic, harbor or other jurisdictional overlay before detector use.
Official source — biloxi.ms.us · Supporting official source — biloxi.ms.us · Verified
City of Birmingham Parks
The current City directory establishes park identity/access but the reviewed current source does not establish blanket recreational detector permission.
Important exceptions: Historical gardens, memorials, trails, athletic facilities and nature areas may have additional site-specific restrictions; confirm before detecting or digging.
Official source — www.birminghamal.gov · Supporting official source — www.birminghamal.gov · Verified
City of Charleston parks and recreation facilities
Charleston publishes a current parks/facilities inventory but no blanket recreational metal-detecting authorization was established for the cohort. Confirm the exact site, digging/recovery limits, events/closures and any permit requirement with the City before use.
Important exceptions: Historic, landscaped, athletic, utility, cemetery, facility and environmentally sensitive areas can carry stricter restrictions.
Official source — www.charleston-sc.gov · Supporting official source — charleston-sc.gov · Verified
City of Columbia public parks and recreation areas
Columbia park rules prohibit digging/removing soil, rock or stones, making excavations and disturbing grass areas unless authorized, permitted or supervised by Parks & Recreation. Detector use therefore requires exact site/recovery authorization rather than an assumption from public access.
Important exceptions: Designated digging areas or an express Parks & Recreation authorization may change the result; protected/historic resources remain separately controlled.
Official source — citycouncil.columbiasc.gov · Supporting official source — parksandrec.columbiasc.gov · Verified
City of Dothan Parks and Recreation
Facility listing/public recreation access does not establish detector/digging permission.
Important exceptions: Confirm exact site and activity-area restrictions before use.
Official source — www.dothan.org · Supporting official source — www.dothan.org · Verified
City of Dover parks
The current City of Dover parks directory establishes park ownership/use but does not itself authorize metal detecting, digging or target recovery. Exact current Parks & Recreation/site rules must be confirmed before field use.
Important exceptions: Fishing, park hours, athletic use, open space and public access are not detector permission. Historic or archaeologically sensitive locations require heightened resource protection.
Official source — www.cityofdover.gov · Verified
City of Gainesville Parks, Recreation and Cultural Affairs
The City of Gainesville PRCA Park Rules and Regulations list using metal detectors among prohibited park activities. Nature-park management materials also state metal detectors are prohibited in nature parks, centers and conservation areas.
Important exceptions: Do not infer permission from public access, recreation programming, facility rental or waterfront access. Any later written authorization, site-specific exception, closure, cultural-resource rule or successor regulation must be verified independently before field use.
Official source — www.gainesvillefl.gov · Supporting official source — www.gainesvillefl.gov · Verified
City of Greenville parks and trails
Greenville publishes current city park identities but no blanket detector/recovery authorization was established for the cohort. Confirm exact site rules, excavation/recovery limits and any event or resource restrictions before field use.
Important exceptions: Historic, landscaped, riverfront, utility, athletic and special-event areas may be more restrictive.
Official source — www.greenvillesc.gov · Supporting official source — www.greenvillesc.gov · Verified
City of Gulfport parks and recreation properties
Current City sources verify the park/facility inventory and amenities, but public access and beach/water amenities are not converted into detector permission.
Important exceptions: Confirm exact manager/site rules and separate shoreline/water jurisdiction before detecting or recovery.
Official source — www.gulfport-ms.gov · Supporting official source — www.gulfport-ms.gov · Verified
City of Hattiesburg parks and recreation properties
Current City materials establish these recreation properties, but no blanket detector/digging permission is inferred.
Important exceptions: Confirm current property rules and protected-resource/riverfront overlays before travel.
Official source — www.hattiesburgms.com · Supporting official source — www.hattiesburgms.com · Verified
City of Hoover Parks and Facilities
Current directory access does not establish blanket recreational metal-detecting or digging permission.
Important exceptions: Natural areas, gardens and trail systems can have stricter disturbance/resource rules.
Official source — hooveralabama.gov · Supporting official source — hooveralabama.gov · Verified
City of Huntsville Parks
The current park directory and park-rule framework do not establish blanket recreational metal-detecting permission across all listed properties.
Important exceptions: Nature preserves, historic sites, sports fields and landscaped civic spaces require exact site confirmation; public access is not detector permission.
Official source — www.huntsvilleal.gov · Supporting official source — www.huntsvilleal.gov · Verified
City of Inverness Parks
Current City of Inverness park rules explicitly prohibit metal detecting in city parks.
Important exceptions: A general Park Use Permit is listed separately, but the current park rules state “No metal detecting”; do not interpret a general event/park-use permit as metal-detecting authorization.
Official source — inverness.gov · Verified
City of Jackson parks and recreation properties
The current City directory verifies public park/facility identities but does not establish blanket metal-detector or digging permission for every property.
Important exceptions: Confirm the exact property, detector operation, ground disturbance/recovery, closures and any historic-resource overlay. Directory inclusion is not permission.
Official source — jacksonms.gov · Supporting official source — jacksonms.gov · Verified
City of Jacksonville / JaxParks
Current JaxParks sources verify facility identity and direct users to Jacksonville Code Chapter 28 Part 7. The current code authorizes park management/activity restrictions and protects park property, vegetation and turf, but this completion audit did not locate a current City rule that affirmatively authorizes recreational metal detecting/target recovery across JaxParks or expressly bans detector operation everywhere. The safe actionable decision is therefore manager/site-specific confirmation required before detecting or recovery; silence and public access are not permission.
Important exceptions: Historic/preserve/natural areas, school joint-use sites, athletic fields, golf courses, boat ramps, waterways, beaches/public-trust areas, construction/closures and properties operated by a different entity require additional scope checks. Chapter 28 scope exclusions for sovereign submerged lands/navigable waters/public-trust beaches are jurisdiction boundaries, not detecting permission. Unrelated pavilion/event permits do not authorize metal detecting.
Official source — library.municode.com · Supporting official source — www.jacksonville.gov · Verified
City of Madison, Wisconsin
City of Madison says metal detecting is allowed in most parks without a permit, with specified prohibited areas and low-impact digging requirements.
Important exceptions: No detecting on athletic fields, burial mounds/surroundings, cemeteries, conservation land or golf courses. Conservation Parks prohibit metal detecting. Digging should use a plastic tool and fully restore the ground.
Official source — www.cityofmadison.com · Verified
City of Meridian parks and sports facilities
Current City pages establish named recreation properties but do not provide a blanket recreational detector authorization.
Important exceptions: Confirm site-specific detector and recovery rules; sports-field access or facility use is not detector permission.
Official source — meridianms.org · Supporting official source — meridianms.org · Verified
City of Mobile Parks & Recreation facilities
The current facilities directory establishes managed public recreation properties but does not itself grant detector or excavation permission.
Important exceptions: Historic squares, cemetery property, waterfronts, athletic complexes and neighborhood parks can have distinct rules; confirm exact site before detecting.
Official source — www.cityofmobile.gov · Supporting official source — www.cityofmobile.org · Verified
City of Montgomery Parks
The City reports more than 60 parks, but current directory presence does not create detector/digging permission.
Important exceptions: Confirm property-specific rules and avoid cultural/historic resources, landscaped features and active athletic areas unless expressly authorized.
Official source — opendata.montgomeryal.gov · Supporting official source — www.montgomeryal.gov · Verified
City of Newark parks and open spaces
Newark park rules prohibit cutting, moving, taking, injuring or defacing turf/rock and prohibit dumping earth/material without written Parks & Recreation permission. The rules do not provide blanket detector permission, so detector-only use and any recovery method require exact site confirmation.
Important exceptions: Written permission is necessary for activities covered by the park-surface/resource rule; a general facility reservation is not detector/recovery authorization.
Official source — www.newarkde.gov · Supporting official source — newarkde.gov · Verified
City of Ocala Parks
Ocala’s current park FAQ states that metal detectors are allowed in city parks only with a permit available from the city.
Important exceptions: The permit does not imply unrestricted digging, submerged recovery, artifact collection, access to closed areas, or authority to disturb historic/cultural resources; current permit and site conditions still govern.
Official source — www.ocalafl.gov · Verified
City of Olive Branch parks and recreation properties
Current City facilities and recreation sources establish public park identities but not detector or ground-disturbance permission.
Important exceptions: Confirm the exact property and current activity/recovery rules before travel.
Official source — www.obms.us · Supporting official source — olivebranch.recdesk.com · Verified
City of Orange City Parks and Recreation
Current City of Orange City park rules prohibit use of any electronic metal-detecting or similar device in any recreational facility and separately prohibit digging holes.
Important exceptions: No general recreational detector authorization is inferred. Any future special written authorization or rule change would require separate current verification; archaeological, historic, memorial, environmental and other protected-resource rules remain controlling.
Official source — www.orangecityfl.gov · Supporting official source — www.orangecityfl.gov · Verified
City of Orlando Parks
City of Orlando park rules prohibit use of metal detectors in any city park unless written authorization is issued by the Parks Division manager or the manager’s designee.
Important exceptions: Written detector authorization does not by itself establish excavation, artifact-recovery, water-detecting, historic-resource, athletic-field, memorial, or event-area rights. Any approved search must follow the written authorization and all other park rules.
Official source — www.orlando.gov · Verified
City of Raleigh parks and recreation properties
Raleigh publishes a current A-Z parks directory, but a blanket recreational metal-detector permission was not established for ordinary properties. Site-specific preserve/historic/resource rules can be stricter.
Important exceptions: Confirm with the exact facility/park manager before detecting or digging; do not disturb archaeology, historic resources, natural resources, utilities or landscaped areas.
Official source — raleighnc.gov · Supporting official source — raleighnc.gov · Verified
City of Richmond parks and recreation properties
Richmond publishes park rules and an extensive park/facility directory, but no current blanket metal-detecting permission was verified. Exact manager confirmation is required before detecting or recovery.
Important exceptions: Historic, riverfront, archaeological and monument settings require heightened resource-protection review.
Official source — www.rva.gov · Supporting official source — www.dhr.virginia.gov · Verified
City of Savannah parks and playgrounds
The current City park directory establishes public park identity but the reviewed current materials do not support a blanket metal-detector permission or prohibition across every listed park. Site-specific confirmation is required before detecting or recovery.
Important exceptions: Historic districts, cemeteries, archaeological resources, special-use facilities, reservations and posted rules may impose additional restrictions.
Official source — www.savannahga.gov · Supporting official source — www.savannahga.gov · Verified
City of Southaven parks and sports complexes
Current City sources establish these public recreation facilities but do not create metal-detector or digging permission.
Important exceptions: Confirm exact facility rules and activity compatibility before detector use or recovery.
Official source — southaven.org · Supporting official source — southaven.org · Verified
City of St. Augustine — City-owned property
The City of St. Augustine Archaeology FAQ states that the City does not issue permits or allow metal detecting or excavation for artifacts on City-owned property.
Important exceptions: The recent-loss language addresses ownership of recently lost items; it is not a general metal-detecting permit. Do not extend this ownership-based prohibition to State, County, Federal, private, or partnership property unless City ownership is independently established.
Official source — www.citystaug.com · Verified
City of Tybee Island public beach areas
current data did not establish a current authoritative citywide metal-detector permission or prohibition from the City materials reviewed. The correct actionable status is to confirm with the City/Beach management rather than infer permission from ordinary beach access.
Important exceptions: Federal refuge islands and other non-city parcels around the Savannah River mouth follow their own federal rules. Archaeological or historic resources remain protected under applicable law.
Official source — www.cityoftybee.org · Supporting official source — www.cityoftybee.org · Verified
City of Virginia Beach parks and public beach/boat facilities
Virginia Beach publishes extensive park and beach/boat facility access information but no current blanket recreational metal-detecting permission was verified in the official park materials reviewed. Exact site confirmation is required.
Important exceptions: Coastal/bottomland artifact recovery can trigger Commonwealth ownership and permit rules. Do not infer from beach access.
Official source — parks.virginiabeach.gov · Supporting official source — www.dhr.virginia.gov · Verified
City of Wilmington parks
The City publishes a current 40-property parks directory. No blanket current recreational detector authorization was established in the researched citywide source layer.
Important exceptions: Confirm the exact park rule/manager, historic-resource constraints and digging/restoration conditions before use.
Official source — www.wilmingtonnc.gov · Verified
City of Wilmington parks system
Wilmington currently publishes a 64-facility city-park directory. Because the directory establishes access/management rather than detector permission, exact site rules and any digging/recovery authorization must be confirmed with the City before field use.
Important exceptions: State Park and First State NHP properties in Wilmington are separate jurisdictions and must not be folded into the City rule.
Official source — www.wilmingtonde.gov · Verified
Colorado
Colorado Parks and Wildlife park regulations protect park property and resources from unauthorized damage/removal. Ordinary park entry, camping, hunting, fishing, boating, gold panning or other recreation does not establish permission to excavate or recover detector targets. Current P-1 park-specific rules must also be checked for the exact property and posted zone.
Important exceptions: Arkansas Headwaters Recreation Area expressly allows recreational gold mining except where posted prohibited; that mineral-recreation exception is not a blanket authorization to recover historic or archaeological objects. Pikes Peak Recreation Area was newly established in 2026 and is governed by current P-1/posted conditions.
Official source — cpw.state.co.us · Supporting official source — cpw.state.co.us · Verified
Colorado
CPW states that access to Lone Mesa is presently restricted to hunting, volunteer and educational programs and that Lone Mesa is not open to other visitors at this time. Metal detecting is therefore not a general recreational access pathway.
Important exceptions: Qualified hunting access does not create detector, digging or recovery permission. Follow the purpose and terms of the specific authorized access.
Official source — cpw.state.co.us · Supporting official source — cpw.state.co.us · Verified
Colorado
CPW states that each State Wildlife Area has different allowed activities and most recreation is wildlife-related. A required SWA pass or hunting/fishing license establishes entry eligibility, not metal-detecting, excavation or object-recovery permission.
Important exceptions: Check the current SWA finder, property restrictions, seasonal closures, ownership, posted rules and the intended activity before detector use or recovery.
Official source — cpw.state.co.us · Supporting official source — cpw.state.co.us · Verified
Colorado
Colorado Natural Areas guidance tells visitors to stay on designated trails, leave rocks, artifacts and plants where they are, and follow landowner rules. Designation does not itself create public detector or collection rights.
Important exceptions: Many natural areas are not generally open to the public; exact ownership and access terms control. No artifact/mineral collection permission is inferred.
Official source — cpw.state.co.us · Supporting official source — cpw.state.co.us · Verified
Colorado
BLM guidance permits metal detectors as hand-prospecting tools on suitable public lands when use causes no more than minor surface disturbance, but developed recreation sites, active mining claims, special designations and protected cultural/historic resources can restrict or prohibit use and recovery.
Important exceptions: Historic and archaeological resources are protected; do not collect cultural objects merely because a detector is otherwise lawful. Confirm current land status, mining claims, special-designation rules, closures and local restrictions.
Official source — www.blm.gov · Supporting official source — www.blm.gov · Verified
Colorado
An NPS national-trail identity does not make the entire Colorado corridor NPS-administered. Apply the NPS detector prohibition on NPS-administered parcels and the actual owner/manager rule elsewhere.
Important exceptions: Trail designation is not a detector permission layer and is not a substitute for parcel ownership.
Official source — www.nps.gov · Supporting official source — www.nps.gov · Verified
Colorado
National Forest access is not blanket detector or digging permission. Forest Orders, developed recreation restrictions, wilderness, archaeological/historic resources, active mining claims and the intended target control detector use and recovery.
Important exceptions: Check the ranger district and current Forest Orders; do not disturb archaeological or historic resources and do not interfere with valid mining claims.
Official source — www.fs.usda.gov · Supporting official source — www.fs.usda.gov · Verified
Colorado
USACE detector use is controlled by 36 CFR Part 327, resource-protection rules, and project-specific restrictions. Recreation at a Corps dam/lake does not mean USACE operates every recreation parcel around the reservoir.
Important exceptions: Tri-Lakes USACE explicitly notes it does not operate Cherry Creek State Park, Bear Creek Lake City Park or Chatfield State Park recreation areas; apply the actual recreation manager rule to those parcels. Confirm exact project/zone before searching or digging.
Official source — www.nwo.usace.army.mil · Supporting official source — www.ecfr.gov · Verified
Colorado
CPW states that most participating State Trust Lands are seasonally open for hunting and fishing only, unless specifically authorized for wildlife viewing. A hunting/fishing license or program access does not authorize metal detecting, digging or object recovery.
Important exceptions: Exact property postings and landowner/CPW authorization control; unauthorized use or activity may be enforced.
Official source — cpw.state.co.us · Supporting official source — cpw.state.co.us · Verified
Connecticut DEEP boating access areas
A public boating-access facility establishes access for boating-related use, not ownership or detector permission across adjacent shoreline/submerged lands.
Important exceptions: Exact parcel ownership, launch rules, shore/submerged-land law, closures and resource protections must be checked.
Official source — eregulations.ct.gov · Supporting official source — portal.ct.gov · Verified
Connecticut NPS-listed mixed-ownership national trails
NPS-listed long-distance trails cross mixed ownership. The NPS detector prohibition applies on actual NPS-administered park areas, while state/local/private rules control their own parcels.
Important exceptions: Never apply the NPS label as a blanket ownership or detecting rule to the entire corridor.
Official source — www.nps.gov · Supporting official source — www.ecfr.gov · Verified
Connecticut State Parks and Forests — recovery/disturbance
RCSA §23-4-1(b)(1) prohibits defacing, destroying, altering, removing or injuring structures, vegetation, earth or rock material except as authorized by DEEP. General public access therefore is not recovery/digging permission.
Important exceptions: Non-disturbing detector scanning is not converted here into a blanket prohibition; archaeological field-study rules and all site-specific directives still apply.
Official source — eregulations.ct.gov · Supporting official source — portal.ct.gov · Verified
Connecticut state-owned beach areas — metal detectors
RCSA §10-386-1(b) expressly states that no archaeological permit is required for metal-detector use at state-owned beach areas, but all such activity must comply with current DEEP directives and regulations.
Important exceptions: The exception is beach-area-specific, not park-wide; it does not authorize disturbing protected earth, vegetation, archaeological resources, closed areas or adjacent non-state/submerged property.
Official source — eregulations.ct.gov · Supporting official source — portal.ct.gov · Verified
Connecticut Wildlife Management Areas
DEEP identifies 109 state-owned WMAs managed for conservation and wildlife-based recreation. Metal detecting/recovery is not inferred from hunting, fishing, trapping, wildlife viewing or general access.
Important exceptions: Exact WMA postings, resource protections, archaeological law and manager direction control.
Official source — portal.ct.gov · Supporting official source — portal.ct.gov · Verified
Crater of Diamonds State Park diamond search area
22 CAR § 50-104 allows regulated diamond searching but prohibits motor-operated and battery-operated diamond-searching equipment in the search area. A recreational metal detector is battery-operated search equipment and therefore is not permitted there.
Important exceptions: Hand-operated equipment that complies with posted diamond-search rules may be used for the park’s mineral-search program; this does not authorize metal detecting elsewhere in the park.
Official source — codeofarrules.arkansas.gov · Supporting official source — www.arkansas.com · Verified
Crocodile Lake National Wildlife Refuge — general public closure
General refuge lands are closed to public use, so recreational metal detecting is not an authorized public activity. The displayed point is an administrative/public-kiosk reference, not a detecting location.
Important exceptions: The office/pollinator garden/kiosk may be accessible during stated hours; this does not open refuge lands to detecting.
Official source — www.fws.gov · Verified
Dane County, Wisconsin
Dane County Parks requires a metal detecting permit. Small probes/diggers are limited in size, disturbed ground must be restored, and scoops/sifters are limited to sand beaches, sand volleyball courts or water.
Important exceptions: Historical/archaeological sites, historical/cultural parklands, state-controlled land maintained by Dane County Parks, and newly acquired lands under development are prohibited.
Official source — www.danecountyparks.com · Supporting official source — www.danecountyparks.com · Verified
Daniel Boone National Forest
Daniel Boone National Forest states that use of metal detectors/electronic apparatuses to locate metal objects without a valid permit is prohibited.
Important exceptions: The order identifies permitted exceptions, including visitors at Twin Knobs and Zilpo Recreation Areas with a valid permit; a permit is a prerequisite, not automatic permission.
Official source — www.fs.usda.gov · Supporting official source — www.fs.usda.gov · Verified
DeKalb County Recreation, Parks & Cultural Affairs
Current official DeKalb park materials establish park identity and management but do not establish a blanket recreational metal-detector permission or prohibition for every listed property. Exact site/manager confirmation is required before detector use or recovery.
Important exceptions: Nature preserves, historic features, cemeteries, partner-operated facilities and posted site-specific rules can be stricter. No permission is inferred from public access.
Official source — dekalbcountyga.gov · Supporting official source — dekalbcountyga.gov · Verified
Delaware dedicated Nature Preserves
DNREC identifies 34 dedicated Nature Preserves and states that some are privately owned and some publicly owned. Visitor guidance prohibits collecting natural or cultural resources, including rocks, soil and cultural artifacts. Exact detector legality therefore follows the underlying owner/manager and site restrictions.
Important exceptions: A Nature Preserve dedication does not itself prove public access or recreational detector permission. Where a preserve overlaps a State Park or Wildlife Area, the controlling parcel rule remains authoritative.
Official source — dnrec.delaware.gov · Supporting official source — dnrec.delaware.gov · Verified
Delaware NPS trail/watershed corridors with mixed ownership
NPS lists these Delaware multi-state trail/watershed identities, but their designation does not make every parcel NPS-owned. Detector and recovery legality must be resolved at the exact land parcel or water-access site.
Important exceptions: Apply 36 CFR §2.1 only where the exact site is NPS-administered. State, municipal, refuge, wildlife-area and private parcels retain their own rules.
Official source — www.nps.gov · Verified
Delaware State Forests
Delaware SHPO guidance states State law does not allow metal detecting on state land without a permit, with the Atlantic-beach exception. 7 Del. C. §5312 separately protects archaeological resources and restricts archaeological recovery tools on State lands. State Forest recreation listings do not create a detector exception.
Important exceptions: The Atlantic-beach exception does not apply to inland State Forests. Any archaeological-resource work requires the applicable State permit; agency authorization must be confirmed before ordinary lost-item recovery or digging.
Official source — history.delaware.gov · Supporting official source — delcode.delaware.gov · Verified
Delaware State Parks — Atlantic ocean beaches east of dune line
7 DE Admin. Code 9201 §3.6.1 creates the express detector exception for ocean beaches east of the dune line during normal park hours. Protected archaeological/historic material remains subject to §3.7 and statewide cultural-resource law.
Important exceptions: The exception is spatial and time-limited. Dunes, inland park land, non-ocean shores and closed areas are not converted into detecting zones. Current signs, closures and protected-resource restrictions remain controlling.
Official source — archive.regulations.delaware.gov · Supporting official source — delaware.gov · Verified
Delaware State Parks — lands outside the ocean-beach exception
7 DE Admin. Code 9201 §3.6 prohibits metal detectors on Division lands except during normal park hours on ocean beaches east of the dune line. §3.7 independently protects prehistoric/historic artifacts and human remains.
Important exceptions: A narrow ocean-beach exception exists east of the dune line during normal park hours. It is not a general State Park permit and does not authorize protected-artifact recovery or activity outside the qualifying ocean-beach footprint.
Official source — archive.regulations.delaware.gov · Supporting official source — delaware.gov · Verified
Delaware State Wildlife Areas
Current DNREC Wildlife Area public rules list metal detecting/use of metal detectors as prohibited. 7 DE Admin. Code 3900 §8.2.6.5 states detector use on Division lands or waters is unlawful without a permit from the Division Director.
Important exceptions: A Director permit is a specific authorization pathway, not ordinary access permission. Conservation Access Passes, hunting access, wildlife viewing and map inclusion do not authorize detecting.
Official source — archive.regulations.delaware.gov · Supporting official source — dnrec.delaware.gov · Verified
Double Trouble State Park — posted no-metal-detector rule
NJDEP Double Trouble State Park trail guidance expressly lists “NO METAL DETECTORS” as a preservation rule for the nationally recognized historic site.
Important exceptions: Do not infer a general permit pathway over this site-specific prohibition. Any official research or agency-authorized activity would require separate written authority.
Official source — www.nj.gov · Supporting official source — www.nj.gov · Verified
Durant Nature Preserve
The current Durant Nature Preserve page explicitly lists metal detectors among prohibited items and activities and also restricts collection/removal of animal or plant material.
Important exceptions: This site-specific rule is not automatically extrapolated to every Raleigh park.
Official source — raleighnc.gov · Supporting official source — raleighnc.gov · Verified
El Camino Real de los Tejas National Historic Trail — Louisiana corridor
The National Historic Trail crosses mixed ownership. Apply the actual parcel manager rule; do not apply the NPS detector prohibition to non-NPS parcels merely because they lie on the trail route.
Important exceptions: NPS-owned lands remain subject to 36 CFR 2.1; state, local and private parcels require their own controlling rule/owner consent.
Official source — www.nps.gov · Supporting official source — www.nps.gov · Verified
Fairfax County Park Authority parkland
Fairfax County Park Authority lists metal detecting and digging among activities prohibited on parkland and states they will not be approved under the permit process.
Important exceptions: Do not infer permission from recreation-center, lake, trail, golf or historic-site access.
Official source — www.fairfaxcounty.gov · Supporting official source — www.fairfaxcounty.gov · Verified
Federal – Michigan
Forest Service Manual 2364.23 allows metal detectors on NFS lands in areas that do not contain and would not reasonably be expected to contain archaeological or historical resources, for lawful purposes consistent with ARPA and 36 CFR 261.9.
Important exceptions: Local forest orders, research natural areas, archaeological/historic resources and other closures override general use. Verify the exact site before recovery.
Official source — www.fs.usda.gov · Verified
Federal – Wisconsin
Forest Service policy generally allows low-impact recreational metal detecting on National Forest System lands in areas that do not contain and would not reasonably be expected to contain archaeological or historical resources.
Important exceptions: Historic/archaeological resources, wilderness/special areas, local closure orders, treasure-trove searches and mineral prospecting have separate restrictions or permit requirements.
Official source — www.fs.usda.gov · Supporting official source — www.fs.usda.gov · Verified
Finger Lakes National Forest recreational metal detecting
Forest Service guidance permits ordinary recreational metal detecting for modern lost items in suitable areas where archaeological/historic resources are absent or not reasonably expected, subject to orders and restrictions.
Important exceptions: Historical/archaeological targeting is not recreationally authorized; exact site/order confirmation remains necessary.
Official source — www.fs.usda.gov · Supporting official source — www.fs.usda.gov · Verified
First State National Historical Park partner-managed historic sites
NPS identifies six First State NHP sites and states most sites are managed and interpreted by partners. The national-park designation therefore cannot be used to assume NPS land ownership at each partner site; exact owner/manager rules and cultural-resource protections must be resolved.
Important exceptions: Historic-site public access, tours or NPS affiliation never authorize detecting or excavation. State-owned partner sites also remain subject to Delaware State-land archaeological protections.
Official source — www.nps.gov · Supporting official source — www.nps.gov · Verified
Fish Island Preserve — State title / City management lease
Current City material confirms the State acquired Fish Island and the City acts as land manager. Florida Statute 267.13 restricts archaeological investigation/removal and treasure/artifact exploration on state-owned or controlled land without proper authority. Those protections do not by themselves create a blanket rule for every modern lost-item detector use, so the actionable outcome is no detecting/recovery trip without current written manager/state clarification.
Important exceptions: The City FAQ prohibiting metal detecting on City-owned property is not automatically applied to the State-owned preserve. Archaeological, historical and cultural-resource searching/recovery is protected by state law. Do not infer permission from public access or City management.
Official source — www.leg.state.fl.us · Supporting official source — www.citystaug.com · Verified
Florida State Forests — statewide managed-land metal-detector prohibition
Fla. Admin. Code R. 5I-4.005(1)(k) expressly states that no person shall use metal detectors on managed lands. Rule 5I-4.005(1)(g) also prohibits digging, harmful disturbance or removal of soil, sand, minerals, artifacts and other materials. The database therefore resolves the statewide State Forest cohort as an A-grade detector prohibition rather than a research hold.
Important exceptions: The State Forest Use Permit mechanism in subsection (2) covers specified activities listed in that subsection. current data does not infer that it overrides the separate subsection (1)(k) metal-detector prohibition. Forest closures, WMA rules and other restrictions may be stricter but cannot be treated as detector permission.
Official source — flrules.elaws.us · Supporting official source — www.fdacs.gov · Verified
Florida State Parks
Current Florida State Parks guidance states that metal detecting is prohibited on all state park lands except coastal parks. In qualifying coastal parks, detecting may occur only within certain beach areas between the toe of the dune and the high-water line as designated by the park manager. The existence of the coastal exception does not identify or map the exact designated strip at every park.
Important exceptions: Metal detecting in submerged locations is not permitted. Inland beaches on lakes, rivers and springs do not qualify for the coastal exception. Objects with historic association (anything over 50 years old) may not be kept. A specifically identified personally lost item may be searched for only after arranging it with park management/staff; that process is not general recreational detecting permission. Park-specific closures, resource protections and narrower rules remain controlling.
Official source — www.floridastateparks.org · Supporting official source — www.floridastateparks.org · Verified
Francis Marion and Sumter National Forests
Forest Closure Order 08-12-00-25-06 prohibits using metal detectors/electronic apparatus to locate metal objects on Francis Marion and Sumter National Forests and exempts persons with a permit specifically authorizing the prohibited act. The order was executed April 18, 2025 and states a two-year duration.
Important exceptions: Official-duty and specifically permitted uses are exempt. Archaeological/historic resource laws remain separate and controlling.
Official source — www.fs.usda.gov · Supporting official source — www.fs.usda.gov · Verified
Georgia Public Fishing Areas
Current Georgia fishing regulations list using metal detectors or collecting artifacts among unlawful activities on Public Fishing Areas.
Important exceptions: No recreational detector exception was identified in the current PFA rules. Site-specific operational closures remain separately controlling.
Official source — www.eregulations.com · Supporting official source — georgiawildlife.com · Verified
Georgia State Parks & Historic Sites
Current Georgia State Parks rules protect natural and man-made features from disturbance/removal and expressly prohibit possession of metal detecting equipment.
Important exceptions: No general recreational detecting exception was identified. Site staff may conduct authorized administrative or resource work; that does not create public recreational permission.
Official source — gastateparks.org · Supporting official source — gastateparks.org · Verified
Georgia Wildlife Management Areas / listed VPA and dove-field properties
Current Georgia hunting regulations list using metal detectors or collecting artifacts as an unlawful activity on WMAs.
Important exceptions: The rule is applied only to the WMA/VPA/dove-field regulatory scope represented in the official directory. Overlapping federal lands may also have federal rules; the stricter applicable rule controls.
Official source — www.eregulations.com · Supporting official source — georgiawildlife.com · Verified
Green Mountain National Forest
Forest Service metal-detecting policy recognizes recreational use while prohibiting disturbance/removal of archaeological or historic resources and requiring compliance with local closures and disturbance rules.
Important exceptions: Wilderness/closed/resource-sensitive areas and archaeological/historic sites may be unavailable; mineral prospecting has separate mining-law considerations.
Official source — www.fs.usda.gov · Supporting official source — www.fs.usda.gov · Verified
Gulf Islands National Seashore — Florida areas
Gulf Islands National Seashore's current laws and policies state that metal detectors are prohibited in all areas of the park.
Important exceptions: No recreational metal-detecting exception is stated. Historic forts, batteries, archaeological resources and sensitive habitats receive additional protection.
Official source — www.nps.gov · Verified
Gwinnett County Parks and Recreation
The county publishes a current named park inventory, but current data did not find an authoritative blanket detector permission/prohibition that can safely be generalized to all listed properties. Exact-site confirmation is required.
Important exceptions: Historic sites, construction sites, golf/aquatic/special facilities and resource-sensitive properties can have separate rules or operational restrictions. Public access does not imply excavation/recovery permission.
Official source — www.gwinnettcounty.com · Supporting official source — www.gwinnettcounty.com · Verified
Hanover County parks
Hanover County’s current Park Rules & Policies expressly list metal detecting as a prohibited activity on park property.
Important exceptions: No general permit exception was identified.
Official source — www.hanovercounty.gov · Supporting official source — www.hanovercounty.gov · Verified
Harrison County Sand Beach
Current Rules of the Beach establish beach-use restrictions but do not create a detector permission rule. Silence is not treated as permission.
Important exceptions: Confirm the exact beach sector, Sand Beach Authority/current local rule, tidelands/water boundary and recovery method before travel; no shoreline polygon is inferred.
Official source — harrisoncountyms.gov · Supporting official source — harrisoncountyms.gov · Verified
Hawaii
Hawaii State Parks rules allow metal detecting devices on sand beaches only, while natural, geological, historical and archaeological features must remain undisturbed.
Important exceptions: A park without a qualifying sand-beach zone is not treated as generally open to detecting. Historic/cultural-resource rules remain controlling even on beach areas.
Official source — dlnr.hawaii.gov · Supporting official source — dlnr.hawaii.gov · Verified
Hawaii
Forest Reserves are public resource-management lands with recreational access, but public access is not blanket authorization to dig, collect minerals or disturb cultural resources.
Important exceptions: Use only where current DOFAW rules and the exact reserve/parcel allow the activity; collection and resource disturbance can require authorization.
Official source — dlnr.hawaii.gov · Supporting official source — dlnr.hawaii.gov · Verified
Hawaii
Natural Area Reserves are designated to preserve unique ecosystems and geological resources; activities may require permits and resource disturbance is not treated as ordinary recreation.
Important exceptions: No detector recovery is inferred from public access. Exact NARS rules and permits control.
Official source — dlnr.hawaii.gov · Supporting official source — dlnr.hawaii.gov · Verified
Hawaii
County beach and park rules vary by island and facility; ordinary beach access is not converted into blanket permission to dig or recover objects.
Important exceptions: Confirm the current county ordinance, park rules, cultural-resource restrictions and exact ownership before detecting.
Official source — www.honolulu.gov · Supporting official source — www.hawaiicounty.gov · Verified
Hawaii
Shoreline access and ownership can involve state, county, federal and private interests; State Parks beach rules do not automatically govern every Hawaii beach.
Important exceptions: Confirm the exact managing entity and cultural/resource restrictions before detecting or digging.
Official source — dlnr.hawaii.gov · Supporting official source — dlnr.hawaii.gov · Verified
Hawaii
National historic trail designation does not mean every parcel is NPS-owned; detector legality follows the actual landowner and applicable resource law.
Important exceptions: NPS-owned parcels retain the federal detector prohibition.
Official source — www.nps.gov · Supporting official source — www.ecfr.gov · Verified
Henrico County parks
Henrico park rules state that no person may use a metal detector or similar device within a park without express prior written permission of the Director, and separately protect historic artifacts/features and natural materials.
Important exceptions: Written detector permission does not automatically authorize excavation, artifact removal or disturbance of protected resources.
Official source — henrico.gov · Supporting official source — henrico.gov · Verified
Hillsborough County Parks & Recreation — recreation-property authorization research hold
Hillsborough County Code Chapter 38 prohibits treasure hunting in all parks and on all park property. The code also restricts unauthorized digging/disturbance of grass areas. For recreational metal-detecting/target-recovery planning, this is an express A-grade prohibition outcome for the County park cohort.
Important exceptions: Do not infer an exception from recreation-center access, rentals, events or open hours. Property-specific closures, conservation protections, historic/archaeological protections and other rules can be stricter.
Official source — library.municode.com · Supporting official source — hcfl.gov · Verified
Huron-Clinton Metropolitan Authority, Michigan
Metal detecting is permitted in many, but not all, Metropark areas with a no-cost permit obtained from the park office. Individual parks identify areas where detecting is prohibited.
Important exceptions: Metroparks rules separately prohibit digging/removing rocks, minerals, artifacts or other material without written permission; follow permit conditions and park-specific exclusions.
Official source — www.metroparks.com · Supporting official source — www.metroparks.com · Verified
Idaho
Idaho park rules classify metal detecting as a non-traditional recreational activity that may be authorized by the park or program manager when compatible with traditional uses and resource preservation. Digging, destruction or removal of historical, cultural or natural resources is prohibited.
Important exceptions: Authorization is site-specific, not statewide permission. Resource-protection rules, closures and any conditions imposed by the manager continue to apply.
Official source — adminrules.idaho.gov · Supporting official source — parksandrecreation.idaho.gov · Verified
Idaho
City of Rocks is a co-managed reserve listed by Idaho State Parks. Idaho park rules require park/program-manager authorization for metal detecting, while federally administered park resources remain subject to federal cultural-resource and detector restrictions.
Important exceptions: Confirm the exact parcel and current reserve manager before carrying or using a detector; protected cultural, historical and archaeological resources remain off limits.
Official source — parksandrecreation.idaho.gov · Supporting official source — www.ecfr.gov · Verified
Idaho
IDFG public-use rules list disturbing or removing soils, gravel or minerals, and cutting or digging vegetation, among activities not allowed without authorization. Ordinary hunting, fishing or public access therefore is not recovery permission.
Important exceptions: A detector scan that does not disturb resources still must follow site closures and posted rules; any recovery involving soil/mineral disturbance requires Department authorization and landowner terms may also control on cooperative sites.
Official source — idfg.idaho.gov · Supporting official source — idfg.idaho.gov · Verified
Idaho
BLM guidance allows lawful detector use on suitable public lands, but cultural resources and historic artifacts are protected, and active mining claims, closures, developed sites and other land-status restrictions can control the exact location.
Important exceptions: Confirm current land ownership, active claims, closures and resource protections before digging. Public access alone is not permission to disturb archaeological or historic materials.
Official source — www.blm.gov · Supporting official source — www.blm.gov · Verified
Idaho
National Conservation Lands carry designation-specific protections in addition to BLM-wide cultural-resource and land-status rules. A named monument, wilderness, WSA, trail or river corridor is not blanket detector/recovery permission.
Important exceptions: Check the exact designated unit, management plan, current closures, mining-claim status where relevant and protected-resource restrictions before detector use or recovery.
Official source — www.blm.gov · Supporting official source — www.blm.gov · Verified
Idaho
A national trail or corridor identity does not make every segment NPS-administered. NPS detector restrictions apply on NPS-administered parcels; other segments follow the rule of the actual landowner or manager.
Important exceptions: Confirm the exact parcel before relying on the corridor name. Protected historic and archaeological resources remain separately restricted.
Official source — www.nps.gov · Supporting official source — www.ecfr.gov · Verified
Idaho
Deer Flat National Wildlife Refuge expressly lists using metal detectors among prohibited activities and separately prohibits collecting plants, animals, rocks or other specimens.
Important exceptions: Authorized official or special-use activity is outside ordinary recreational use and requires refuge approval.
Official source — www.fws.gov · Supporting official source — www.ecfr.gov · Verified
Idaho
Forest Service guidance recognizes recreational metal detecting and prospecting as generally allowable low-impact activities in suitable areas, while archaeological and historic resources are protected and mining claims, wilderness, closures, developed-site restrictions and surface disturbance can change the result.
Important exceptions: Stop if archaeological or historical material is encountered. Confirm active claims, current forest orders, wilderness/special-area rules and whether planned disturbance requires additional mining authorization.
Official source — www.fs.usda.gov · Supporting official source — apps.fs.usda.gov · Verified
Idaho
36 CFR 327.14 permits metal detectors on designated beaches or other previously disturbed areas unless the District Commander prohibits them; project managers provide the exact designated-area policy. Historical, archaeological and paleontological resources remain protected.
Important exceptions: A lake or project name does not mean every shoreline parcel is Corps-managed or open. Confirm the exact recreation area, manager and currently designated detector area before use.
Official source — www.ecfr.gov · Supporting official source — www.nww.usace.army.mil · Verified
Idaho
Idaho allows general recreation on legally accessible endowment lands when compatible with trust management, and allows casual exploration for gemstones/mineral specimens on open land not under a valid mineral lease or exploration location. Collecting valuable minerals or more intensive mineral activity can require separate authorization.
Important exceptions: Confirm land status, closures, leases/claims and the proposed activity with IDL. Archaeological, historic and paleontological resources and activities outside ordinary recreation have separate protections or authorization requirements.
Official source — www.idl.idaho.gov · Supporting official source — www.idl.idaho.gov · Verified
Illinois
IDNR requires a metal detecting permit at sites that allow the activity. The site superintendent designates the permitted area; recovery tools are limited and designated-beach detecting is sunrise to 10 a.m.
Important exceptions: Not all IDNR sites allow detecting. No detecting is allowed on State Historical, Archaeological or Nature Preserve sites; site superintendents may impose stricter limits.
Official source — dnr.illinois.gov · Supporting official source — dnr.illinois.gov · Verified
Illinois
The current IDNR metal-detecting permit expressly prohibits metal detecting on any State Historical, Archaeological or Nature Preserve site.
Important exceptions: Where a larger recreation property contains a protected sub-area, that protected portion remains closed even if detecting is authorized elsewhere.
Official source — dnr.illinois.gov · Supporting official source — dnr.illinois.gov · Verified
Illinois
Current site-specific IDNR pages expressly prohibit metal detecting at the listed property or complex.
Important exceptions: Site-specific prohibitions override the general permit pathway.
Official source — dnr.illinois.gov · Supporting official source — dnr.illinois.gov · Verified
Illinois
Giant City State Park allows metal detecting under the park permit process, but excludes the lodge area, Fern Rocks Nature Preserve and Stone Fort; shovels are not permitted.
Important exceptions: Protected and historic subareas remain closed.
Official source — dnr.illinois.gov · Supporting official source — dnr.illinois.gov · Verified
Illinois
These conservation properties may contain Nature Preserve or other protected parcels. Public access or hunting does not establish detector-recovery permission.
Important exceptions: Any State Nature Preserve portion is expressly closed by the current IDNR metal-detecting permit.
Official source — dnr.illinois.gov · Supporting official source — dnr.illinois.gov · Verified
Illinois
Shawnee Forest Plan guidance restricts visitor metal-detector use to developed recreation sites not associated with heritage-resource sites.
Important exceptions: Historic, prehistoric, archaeological, wilderness, natural-area and other sensitive-resource locations remain protected; treasure/heritage searches can require federal authorization.
Official source — www.fs.usda.gov · Supporting official source — www.fs.usda.gov · Verified
Illinois
Midewin is a restored federal prairie on the former Joliet Army Ammunition Plant landscape. Ordinary public access is not treated as blanket excavation or detector-recovery permission.
Important exceptions: Confirm current Forest Service rules, closures, former-munitions restrictions and heritage-resource protections before detecting.
Official source — www.fs.usda.gov · Supporting official source — www.fs.usda.gov · Verified
Illinois
National historic trails cross multiple ownerships; the NPS detector prohibition applies on NPS-controlled land, while non-NPS parcels follow the actual owner rules.
Important exceptions: Do not infer NPS ownership from the trail corridor alone.
Official source — home.nps.gov · Supporting official source — www.ecfr.gov · Verified
Illinois
USACE recreation access does not establish blanket detecting permission; current project rules and 36 CFR Part 327 control detector use and resource protection.
Important exceptions: Historic and archaeological resources remain protected and local project orders can be stricter.
Official source — www.mvs.usace.army.mil · Supporting official source — www.ecfr.gov · Verified
Illinois
Local public access does not itself establish permission to use a detector or disturb turf, beaches or protected resources.
Important exceptions: Check the current ordinance, park rules and exact ownership before detecting.
Official source — www.chicagoparkdistrict.com · Supporting official source — fpdcc.com · Verified
Indiana
Indiana's current DNR property rule prohibits metal-detector use except on a sand swimming beach approved by an authorized representative. Digging or excavating material from the ground is separately prohibited, and artifacts, archaeological/historic resources, rocks and minerals are protected from unauthorized removal.
Important exceptions: An approved beach exception does not authorize archaeological collecting, unrestricted excavation or activity in a posted/closed/protected zone. Check the property office for the exact approved beach area before detecting.
Official source — inrules.elaws.us · Supporting official source — www.in.gov · Verified
Indiana
Current Indiana Fish & Wildlife property rules list metal detecting and artifact collecting among prohibited activities. Public hunting, fishing or wildlife access therefore does not establish detector-recovery permission.
Important exceptions: A separately published written authorization or exact manager order would control if one exists; do not infer an exception from general public access.
Official source — www.in.gov · Supporting official source — www.in.gov · Verified
Indiana
Indiana's current Game Bird Habitat Area rules expressly list metal detecting and collecting artifacts as prohibited activities.
Important exceptions: Most Game Bird Habitat Areas are also closed to general public access; limited seasonal access at Goose Creek and Pine Creek does not create metal-detecting permission.
Official source — secure.in.gov · Supporting official source — www.in.gov · Verified
Indiana
Indiana's public nature-preserve directory includes properties with different owners and managers. Public visitation does not establish detector-recovery permission; state-resource protections and the exact preserve owner's rules control.
Important exceptions: Not every listed nature preserve is owned or operated by Indiana DNR. Do not transfer a rule from one preserve to another or enter sensitive habitat off approved access routes.
Official source — www.in.gov · Supporting official source — inrules.elaws.us · Verified
Indiana
Indiana protects archaeological resources on state property. Surface artifact collecting is not lawful on state property, and qualifying archaeological field investigation requires the applicable state authorization and approved plan.
Important exceptions: Do not disturb, remove or disclose sensitive archaeological material. Official research or recovery undertaken under the required authorization is different from recreational metal detecting.
Official source — www.in.gov · Supporting official source — www.indianamuseum.org · Verified
Indiana
Indiana DNR prospecting guidance identifies a metal detector among non-motorized prospecting equipment that may be used when the waterway, ingress/egress, riparian permission and activity criteria are satisfied.
Important exceptions: This is not blanket permission for every shore, bed or access point. Obtain required riparian permission, use lawful access, follow time/equipment criteria, avoid protected resources and verify whether another manager controls the parcel.
Official source — www.in.gov · Supporting official source — www.in.gov · Verified
Indiana
A national historic trail designation can cross land that is not federally owned. Apply the actual parcel owner's detector rule rather than treating the entire corridor as NPS land.
Important exceptions: Direct NPS-owned land remains subject to federal detector/resource restrictions. Private, state and local segments require their own permission and resource rules.
Official source — home.nps.gov · Supporting official source — www.ecfr.gov · Verified
Indiana
Forest Service guidance allows recreational detector use only where it does not conflict with protected archaeological, historic or prehistoric resources and other site restrictions. Exact developed-site, wilderness and closure rules still apply.
Important exceptions: Do not search known or reasonably suspected archaeological/historic sites, disturb protected resources, or assume wilderness/developed-area rules are identical. Obtain any authorization required for the proposed activity.
Official source — www.fs.usda.gov · Supporting official source — www.fs.usda.gov · Verified
Indiana
USACE project rules protect archaeological, historic and natural resources and can restrict excavation and detector use to specifically authorized areas. Indiana projects may also have state-managed recreation parcels with different controlling rules.
Important exceptions: Confirm the exact project parcel and manager before detecting; a state recreation area at a federal project does not make every federal or shoreline parcel open.
Official source — www.lrd.usace.army.mil · Supporting official source — www.ecfr.gov · Verified
Indiana
Indiana public-access directories include sites managed by different public and private entities. Access for boating, fishing, trails or recreation is not detector-recovery permission.
Important exceptions: Apply the rule of the actual parcel manager, protect historic/archaeological resources and obtain any required written approval before soil disturbance.
Official source — www.in.gov · Supporting official source — www.in.gov · Verified
Indiana local government
Local park ownership and ordinances vary. Public park access does not by itself establish permission to use a detector, dig or keep recovered objects.
Important exceptions: Check the exact park's current ordinance, posted rules, event restrictions and excavation/resource provisions before detecting.
Official source — parks.indy.gov · Supporting official source — www.fortwayneparks.org · Verified
Iowa
Recreational metal detecting is prohibited in Iowa state parks and recreation areas except in designated beach areas during the Chapter 64 seasonal time windows and on qualifying drained artificial lakebeds only after the required archaeological survey/SHPO approval. Owners searching for a specific lost item in a normally prohibited area require written park approval.
Important exceptions: Designated beaches: May 22–Sep 7, 4:00 a.m.–11:00 a.m.; Sep 8–May 21, 4:00 a.m.–10:30 p.m. Drained artificial lakebeds require completed/approved archaeological survey and local park confirmation. Tool and excavation-size limits apply, and cultural/natural features remain protected.
Official source — www.iowadnr.gov · Supporting official source — www.iowadnr.gov · Verified
Iowa
Iowa publishes state-forest recreation access but the Chapter 64 detector-use exception is written for state parks and recreation areas. No blanket recreational metal-detecting authorization was located for state forests; exact forest/parcel manager confirmation is required before detecting, digging, or recovery.
Important exceptions: Protected natural/cultural resources and any preserve, archaeological, closed, leased or specially posted subareas remain controlling.
Official source — www.iowadnr.gov · Supporting official source — www.iowadnr.gov · Verified
Iowa
Iowa state preserves are dedicated for permanent protection of significant natural and cultural features. Removal or damage to natural materials, archaeological materials, and other cultural materials is prohibited on most preserves; burial sites are separately protected from intentional disturbance.
Important exceptions: Some preserves allow hunting or have owner-specific access, but that does not create metal-detecting, excavation, artifact-recovery, or natural-material removal permission. Some preserves are not publicly accessible.
Official source — www.iowadnr.gov · Supporting official source — www.iowadnr.gov · Verified
Iowa
Iowa DNR WMAs are public wildlife lands with wildlife-dependent recreation and area-specific restrictions, but the public-use/hunting pathway does not itself authorize metal detecting, soil disturbance, artifact recovery, or removal of natural/cultural material. Exact ownership, posted restrictions, refuge status and manager permission must be checked.
Important exceptions: Some public-hunting atlas areas are county, federal or cooperating lands; portions can be refuges or restricted areas. The exact parcel authority controls.
Official source — www.iowadnr.gov · Supporting official source — www.iowadnr.gov · Verified
Iowa
IHAP contracts provide walk-in public hunting access on enrolled private land from September 1 through May 31. Iowa DNR expressly states that other activities are not included and are prohibited through the IHAP public-access contract.
Important exceptions: A landowner may control private-land activities outside the IHAP public-access authorization, but detecting/recovery would require the actual owner’s permission and compliance with all other applicable laws; IHAP signage/boundaries control public hunting access.
Official source — www.iowadnr.gov · Supporting official source — www.iowadnr.gov · Verified
Iowa
A national historic trail designation does not make every parcel federally owned or open to detecting. Determine the actual parcel owner/manager first; NPS-administered federal land remains subject to federal resource-protection rules.
Important exceptions: Private, state, local and other federal parcels retain their own rules.
Official source — www.nps.gov · Supporting official source — www.nps.gov · Verified
Iowa local government
No statewide rule grants detector permission on county or municipal park/conservation land. Confirm the exact local ordinance, property rules, resource protections and digging/recovery permission before detecting.
Important exceptions: Individual county parks, conservation areas, historic properties, preserves and leased parcels can differ within the same local system.
Official source — www.iowadnr.gov · Supporting official source — www.iowadnr.gov · Verified
James City County parks and recreation facilities
James City County Section 16-22 prohibits electronic metal detecting devices in recreational facilities except areas designated by the Parks & Recreation Director. Current Jamestown Beach Event Park guidance permits staff-supervised detecting only on selected October-through-March dates and only in the beachfront sand area; other areas remain excluded.
Important exceptions: Jamestown Beach Event Park detecting is staff-supervised, seasonal and footprint-limited. The current page states detecting is not permitted April through September; river detecting involves a separate state-owned-waters permit requirement.
Official source — documents.jamescitycountyva.gov · Supporting official source — www.jamescitycountyva.gov · Verified
Jefferson County, Colorado
Jefferson County Open Space states metal detecting is allowed, but participants may not keep found items or disturb a natural surface, except when actively searching for a lost personal item.
Important exceptions: Other park closures, cultural/natural-resource protections and lost-property rules still apply.
Official source — www.jeffco.us · Supporting official source — www.jeffco.us · Verified
Jefferson National Forest — Kentucky-listed public-land footprint
The current KDFWR regional public-land roster identifies Jefferson National Forest in the Southeast Region. No Kentucky-specific blanket detector permission is inferred from that listing.
Important exceptions: Federal archaeological/resource protections and any local Forest Orders remain controlling; verify the exact Forest Service unit before travel.
Official source — fw.ky.gov · Supporting official source — www.fs.usda.gov · Verified
Jefferson Patterson Park and Museum
Jefferson Patterson Park and Museum is treated separately from the Maryland Park Service recreation cohort because it is an archaeology/history-focused Maryland Historical Trust property.
Important exceptions: Do not infer detector permission from public visitation. Obtain explicit current property authorization before any detector or ground-disturbing activity.
Official source — jefpat.maryland.gov · Supporting official source — dnr.maryland.gov · Verified
Jekyll Island State Park / Jekyll Island Authority
Current Jekyll Island rules expressly state that metal or mineral detectors are not allowed.
Important exceptions: No public recreational exception identified. Conservation, archaeological and authorized management work does not create general visitor permission.
Official source — www.jekyllisland.com · Supporting official source — www.jekyllisland.com · Verified
Johnson County, Kansas
JCPRD Code §2.2.3 restricts detector use to holders of a valid District Metal Detector Permit operating in conformity with that permit. Current permit information identifies Heritage Park, Kill Creek Park and Shawnee Mission Park special-use areas.
Important exceptions: Collection/damage of district property, vegetation, ruins, relics and geological formations is separately restricted; permit conditions and temporary closures control.
Official source — www.jcprd.com · Supporting official source — jcprd.com · Verified
Kansas
K.A.R. 115-8-20 prohibits unauthorized digging of holes or pits and destroying, defacing, degrading, or removing geological formations, historical sites, archaeological relics or ruins, and other public property on department lands and waters. Recreational access therefore is not blanket permission to dig or recover targets.
Important exceptions: A specific department authorization or site-specific regulation may control. Posted special-use restrictions vary by public land.
Official source — www.sos.ks.gov · Supporting official source — kdwpt.ks.gov · Verified
Kansas
Kansas park regulations expressly prohibit digging holes and removing geological formations, archaeological relics or ruins, and vegetation. A park listing is therefore not represented as open recreational recovery permission.
Important exceptions: A specific written/site authorization could supersede the default; archaeological and historical targeting remains protected.
Official source — kdwpt.ks.gov · Supporting official source — www.sos.ks.gov · Verified
Kansas
National historic trail corridors cross mixed federal, state, local, tribal and private ownership; the exact parcel manager must be resolved before applying detecting rules.
Important exceptions: Direct NPS-administered property remains subject to federal archaeological/resource-protection rules.
Official source — www.nps.gov · Supporting official source — www.nps.gov · Verified
Kansas federal lands
Forest Service detector guidance distinguishes recent lost-item recreational searching from archaeological/historical searching, treasure hunting and mineral prospecting. Cultural resources remain protected and local orders/site restrictions control.
Important exceptions: Stop if cultural material is encountered; special-use/mining rules may apply depending on purpose.
Official source — www.fs.usda.gov · Supporting official source — www.fs.usda.gov · Verified
Kentucky Fish & Wildlife WMAs and public lands
KDFWR states that public-land ownership, opportunities, permits and special regulations vary by property. The WMA/public-land roster establishes identity and access context, not recreational metal-detector permission.
Important exceptions: A hunting/fishing license, WMA user permit or open season is not detector authorization. Check ownership overlays and the exact public-lands officer before detecting or recovery.
Official source — fw.ky.gov · Supporting official source — fw.ky.gov · Verified
Kentucky Hunting Access Areas
KDFWR describes HAAs as private lands opened under landowner agreements for public hunting access, with activity-specific limits. That access is not transferred to recreational detecting or excavation.
Important exceptions: Written landowner/manager confirmation is required for detector use and recovery; respect any HAA waiver and activity restrictions.
Official source — fw.ky.gov · Supporting official source — fw.ky.gov · Verified
Kentucky military installations/training lands listed as public-hunting access
Military installation or training-area access is purpose-specific and controlled by the installation. KDFWR public-hunting listing does not grant detector use, digging or recovery rights.
Important exceptions: Only proceed with explicit current installation authorization covering detector use, location, tools and recovery. Security closures and unexploded-ordnance restrictions override recreation access.
Official source — fw.ky.gov · Supporting official source — fw.ky.gov · Verified
Kentucky NPS-administered national historic trails
NPS lists the national historic trails in Kentucky, but trail routes cross mixed ownership and jurisdiction. The NPS resource rule applies on NPS-administered lands; other segments require the actual landowner rule.
Important exceptions: Do not apply NPS ownership or detector restrictions to non-NPS trail segments without verifying the exact parcel/manager.
Official source — www.nps.gov · Supporting official source — www.ecfr.gov · Verified
Kentucky State Forests
Kentucky Forestry lists ten current State Forest properties. No statewide recreational metal-detector permission was found for these properties; Kentucky public-land archaeology protections and any co-manager WMA rules remain controlling.
Important exceptions: For State Forest/WMA properties, comply with both Forestry and KDFWR controls. Do not infer detector permission from hunting, hiking or forestry access.
Official source — eec.ky.gov · Supporting official source — apps.legislature.ky.gov · Verified
Kentucky State Nature Preserves
KNP visitor rules restrict preserves to passive use/trails and prohibit collecting plants, animals, rocks, artifacts or wood. The agency separately requires research approval for research activity.
Important exceptions: This rule resolves ordinary recreational target recovery as unavailable on dedicated preserves; it does not expose sensitive resource coordinates or imply access to research-only preserves.
Official source — eec.ky.gov · Supporting official source — eec.ky.gov · Verified
Kentucky State Parks
304 KAR 1:050 states that, except for the listed official-use exceptions, use of metal detectors is prohibited in all Kentucky state parks.
Important exceptions: Section 2 allows park personnel, law-enforcement personnel and utilities to use metal detectors; no recreational exception is created.
Official source — apps.legislature.ky.gov · Supporting official source — parks.ky.gov · Verified
Kentucky state, county and municipal public lands
KRS 164.720 requires a permit before exploring, excavating, appropriating or removing an archaeological site or object of antiquity from Commonwealth, state-agency, political-subdivision or municipal land. This does not establish blanket recreational detector permission or a blanket detector ban.
Important exceptions: The statute is archaeology/object-of-antiquity specific. Ordinary modern lost-item detecting still requires the exact land manager to confirm detector use, tools, recovery and local rules.
Official source — apps.legislature.ky.gov · Supporting official source — apps.legislature.ky.gov · Verified
Kisatchie National Forest
Current Kisatchie forest order prohibits possession/use of a metal detector for any purpose upon or within archaeological, prehistoric or historic resources. Forest Service national guidance also protects historic/archaeological resources and makes lawful recreational use context-specific.
Important exceptions: Do not use a detector at or around cultural/historic/archaeological resources. Check current forest orders and the local ranger district before detecting or digging.
Official source — www.fs.usda.gov · Supporting official source — www.fs.usda.gov · Verified
Lake Conway exposed lakebed/item-removal activity
AGFC suspended all Lake Conway item-removal permits until further notice and stated that digging in the lakebed is not allowed and items may not be removed while cultural-resource/permitting review proceeds.
Important exceptions: A future AGFC announcement could change this operational rule; no permission is inferred until a current reinstatement is verified.
Official source — www.agfc.com · Supporting official source — www.agfc.com · Verified
Lake County Parks & Trails
Lake County currently states that metal detecting is strictly prohibited on all county properties. Current county Parks & Trails, sports-complex and conservation-area listings are used only to establish that an individual place is county-operated; they do not create a detecting exception.
Important exceptions: Do not extend this county rule to municipal parks, Florida state parks, Water Authority properties, federal lands, or other separately managed properties located within Lake County; those require their own governing rule. Public access, trails, sports use, lake access, geocaching or a map pin do not create metal-detecting permission.
Official source — lakecountyfl.gov · Verified
Lake Woodruff National Wildlife Refuge — detector prohibition
Current FWS visitor rules expressly prohibit metal detecting and artifact removal/disturbance.
Important exceptions: Fishing and hunting removals are governed by their own regulations; they do not create a metal-detecting exception.
Official source — www.fws.gov · Verified
Land Between the Lakes National Recreation Area
The current Land Between the Lakes rules expressly state that metal detectors are strictly prohibited and prohibit disturbance/removal of archaeological artifacts and public/natural features.
Important exceptions: A specific written Forest Service authorization for official/authorized activity would control; ordinary recreational detecting has no exception in the published visitor rule.
Official source — www.landbetweenthelakes.us · Supporting official source — landbetweenthelakes.us · Verified
LDWF Wildlife Management Areas, state wildlife refuges and conservation areas
Current LDWF rules require WMA Access and generally Self-Clearing permits for public-land activities, but the access permits are not affirmative authorization to search with a detector, dig, or recover protected resources. Exact property/activity permission must be confirmed.
Important exceptions: Some properties have additional closures, access restrictions or exemptions. Public access and an access permit must never be represented as metal-detecting permission.
Official source — www.wlf.louisiana.gov · Supporting official source — www.wlf.louisiana.gov · Verified
Lee County Parks & Recreation
Lee County Ordinance 18-27 prohibits metal detector use on athletic fields, in environmentally sensitive areas, or in safety-hazard areas unless authorized by the Parks & Recreation Director or designee.
Important exceptions: Lee County Ordinance 18-12 separately protects park resources and requires a special written permit for excavation by tools. Detecting does not authorize digging, disturbance of vegetation, removal of natural objects, or entry into posted/closed areas.
Official source — www.leegov.com · Verified
Lee County Parks & Recreation — metal detector and resource-protection framework
Lee County prohibits metal-detector use on athletic fields, environmentally sensitive areas and safety-hazard areas unless authorized by the Director/designee. County resource-protection rules also prohibit excavation or removal of soil, sand, rocks and other natural material without a special written permit and prohibit digging in or otherwise disturbing grass/vegetation. Public records under this rule therefore use a conservative surface-only classification outside excluded areas rather than blanket park-wide permission.
Important exceptions: Do not infer permission for athletic fields, preserves/environmentally sensitive areas, safety-hazard areas, closed/posted areas, historic/cultural features or water/submerged areas. No recreational digging is inferred. Director/designee authorization controls the detector-prohibited zones, and special written authorization is required for excavation/natural-material removal.
Official source — www.leegov.com · Supporting official source — www.leegov.com · Verified
Lexington-Fayette public parks
Lexington publishes over 100 city parks. The municipal code restricts digging, disturbing or excavating a public place under its permit provisions; no blanket recreational metal-detector authorization was verified.
Important exceptions: A non-invasive detector sweep is not assumed allowed. Confirm detector operation with Parks and obtain any required authorization before probing, digging or recovery.
Official source — www.lexingtonky.gov · Supporting official source — library.municode.com · Verified
Local government – Michigan
General public recreation access is not converted into metal-detecting or digging permission. Confirm the exact park rule and any permit with the responsible local authority.
Important exceptions: Historic/natural preserves and park-specific ordinances may be more restrictive.
Official source — www.oakgov.com · Supporting official source — geneseecountyparks.org · Verified
Local government – Wisconsin
Public park access is not converted into metal-detecting or digging permission. Check current ordinance and obtain written authorization where required.
Important exceptions: Historic/cultural sites, natural areas and property-specific restrictions may be stricter.
Official source — www.browncountywi.gov · Verified
Louisiana archaeological resources — state lands and state-owned water bottoms
R.S. 41:1610 prohibits excavation/removal/damage of archaeological resources on state lands without owning-agency approval and a permit; the Division of Archaeology requires permits for intrusive state-land archaeology and even non-intrusive archaeological research/remote sensing.
Important exceptions: This is a protected-resource overlay, not a blanket statement about every modern lost-item search. When archaeological/historic resources are the purpose or encountered, stop and follow the permit/protection rules.
Official source — www.legis.la.gov · Supporting official source — www.crt.state.la.us · Verified
Louisiana municipal/parish public parks without an affirmative detector rule stored
The current official directory verifies the public place/manager, but no current affirmative metal-detector/recovery permission is stored. Confirm the operator rule before use; owner consent and cultural-resource protections remain controlling.
Important exceptions: Do not infer permission from a park listing, event permit, open hours, a beach/green-space designation or absence of a detector-specific rule.
Official source — www.legis.la.gov · Supporting official source — www.crt.state.la.us · Verified
Louisiana Office of State Parks properties
Louisiana Administrative Code Title 25, Part IX, §303(H) prohibits the display, possession and/or use of metal detectors or similar devices on OSP property and forbids digging/removing historical features, relics or artifacts.
Important exceptions: Professional archaeological research requires the applicable Louisiana Archaeological Survey and Antiquities Commission permit process; this is not a recreational detecting exception.
Official source — www.lastateparks.com · Supporting official source — www.lastateparks.com · Verified
Louisville Metro Parks
Louisville Parks and Recreation currently states that operation of metal detectors is prohibited and that removal of natural resources is not allowed.
Important exceptions: No recreational exception is stated on the published rules page; follow any site closure or separate facility rule as well.
Official source — louisvilleky.gov · Supporting official source — louisvilleky.gov · Verified
Macon-Bibb County Parks & Recreation metal-detector permit program
Macon-Bibb publishes a metal-detector permit program. Use is limited to eligible developed parks, a signed permit request is required, permits are limited in duration, ballfields/open practice fields and fenced permit-access locations are excluded, and digging tools are prohibited.
Important exceptions: Natural Areas, designated archaeological sites and certain parks are off-limits; the Director may amend the off-limits list. The permit does not reserve space and cannot be used during conflicting reservations/special events. Archaeological finds require activity to cease and Parks & Recreation to be notified.
Official source — www.maconbibb.us · Supporting official source — www.maconbibb.us · Verified
Maine MDIFW Wildlife Management Areas
MDIFW states WMAs are generally open for recreation, but the current WMA materials do not create a blanket metal-detecting/digging authorization. Because hunting, fishing, boating or wildlife-watching access is activity-specific, detector use and recovery remain confirmation-gated; Maine Antiquities Law separately protects qualifying archaeological sites on State-controlled land.
Important exceptions: Steve Powell (Swan Island) has an express detector prohibition and is classified separately.
Official source — www.maine.gov · Supporting official source — www.maine.gov · Verified
Maine municipal park/beach systems
No statewide Maine State Park detector permit applies to municipally managed property. Verify current municipal ordinances, posted rules and recovery/disturbance permission before detecting.
Important exceptions: Beach access, park hours or general recreation permission is not detector permission.
Official source — www.maine.gov · Supporting official source — www.maine.gov · Verified
Maine Public Reserved Lands / other Bureau Public Lands
Public Lands rules prohibit damaging natural features and require designated cultural resources/preserves to remain undisturbed. Bureau permit guidance says activities that alter or remove anything from Bureau-owned land exceed normal recreation and require a permit or license.
Important exceptions: Do not project the State Park detector-permit rule onto Public Lands; obtain the exact Bureau determination for detecting and recovery.
Official source — www1.maine.gov · Supporting official source — www.maine.gov · Verified
Maine State Historic Sites
Maine State Park Rule 4 expressly prohibits use of metal detectors at historic sites.
Important exceptions: No recreational detector pathway is represented for State Historic Sites.
Official source — www.maine.gov · Supporting official source — www.maine.gov · Verified
Maine State Parks
Maine State Park Rule 4 prohibits metal detectors at historic sites and allows detectors in other covered park areas only by written permit obtained at the park. Rule 1 separately protects natural, physical, prehistoric and historic resources from removal or damage.
Important exceptions: A written detector permit must control the exact area and conditions; it does not override archaeology/resource protections.
Official source — www.maine.gov · Supporting official source — www.maine.gov · Verified
Major Connecticut municipal park systems
Official city pages verify these park systems, but no current authoritative citywide metal-detector permission was generalized across every municipal park.
Important exceptions: Exact park ordinance, historic-resource status, posted rule and manager direction control.
Official source — www.hartfordct.gov · Supporting official source — www.stamfordct.gov · Verified
Major New Jersey municipal park systems without a verified blanket detector rule
Current municipal park directories establish park-system access and management but do not publish a blanket metal-detecting authorization for the entire system. Exact park rules and recovery/digging permission must be confirmed before use.
Important exceptions: County parks, State Park Service land and federally managed sites within the same city are separate jurisdictions.
Official source — www.newarknj.gov · Supporting official source — www.jerseycitynj.gov · Verified
Marion County Parks
Marion County states that metal detector use within county-owned or managed park facilities may only occur with a County metal-detecting permit and publishes a specific approved-location list. Properties not on the current approved list are not treated as permit-eligible detecting locations.
Important exceptions: Current rules explicitly prohibit metal detectors or digging tools at Horseshoe Lake Park & Retreat, Fort King National Historic Landmark, county-owned/maintained sports fields, and other areas deemed significant. Archaeological/cultural items may not be kept; holes must be backfilled and compacted.
Official source — parks.marionfl.org · Verified
Maryland national trail/program corridors — mixed ownership
A national trail/program designation does not make every Maryland parcel NPS-owned. Detector legality must be resolved against the exact underlying land manager and current site rule.
Important exceptions: NPS-owned park areas remain subject to 36 CFR §2.1. State/local/private segments may have different rules. No route corridor is treated as a permission polygon.
Official source — www.nps.gov · Supporting official source — www.ecfr.gov · Verified
Maryland Park Service designated swimming beaches — modern coin/jewelry exception
MPS allows metal detectors for modern coins, jewelry and similar recent items on eligible designated swimming beaches, but Park Manager permission is required and seasonal/hour restrictions apply.
Important exceptions: From May 30 through Labor Day, detector use is generally barred from 9:00 a.m. through dusk. Managers may impose additional restrictions. Artifact/relic hunting and protected-resource disturbance remain prohibited. Point Lookout and Calvert Cliffs are excluded.
Official source — dnr.maryland.gov · Supporting official source — dnr.maryland.gov · Verified
Maryland Park Service lands, beaches and waters — general detector rule
Maryland Park Service policy prohibits relic/treasure digging, prehistoric/historic artifact removal and metal-detector use without a Maryland Historical Trust Office of Archaeology permit. That archaeology permit is for qualified scientific investigation, not ordinary recreational detecting.
Important exceptions: The ordinary-user exception is limited to modern coins/jewelry on eligible designated MPS swimming beaches with Park Manager permission. Point Lookout State Park and Calvert Cliffs State Park are explicitly excluded from that exception.
Official source — dnr.maryland.gov · Supporting official source — dnr.maryland.gov · Verified
Maryland State Forest lands — COMAR 08.07.01.18
Maryland State Forest recreation guidance states that metal detectors and artifact removal are prohibited under COMAR 08.07.01.18.
Important exceptions: Archaeological/scientific exceptions require Maryland Historical Trust authorization and are not ordinary recreational permission. Forest-specific closures and access rules may be stricter.
Official source — dnr.maryland.gov · Supporting official source — dnr.maryland.gov · Verified
Maryland Wildlife & Heritage Service controlled lands — metal detector authorization
Maryland WMA rules require prior authorization before digging for relics/treasures, removing prehistoric/historic artifacts or using a metal detector. The governing framework requires Maryland Historical Trust Office of Archaeology authorization and a Service use permit.
Important exceptions: Hunting, fishing or public-access permission does not substitute for metal-detector/recovery authorization. Cooperative properties can have additional owner/manager restrictions.
Official source — dnr.maryland.gov · Supporting official source — dnr.maryland.gov · Verified
Massachusetts DCR coastal and inland sandy beaches
302 CMR 12.04(12) expressly excepts coastal and inland sandy beaches from the general detector restriction.
Important exceptions: The exception is not property-wide; dunes, lawns, historic structures, archaeological sites and non-sandy areas remain governed by other DCR restrictions. Resource disturbance/removal rules still apply.
Official source — www.mass.gov · Supporting official source — www.mass.gov · Verified
Massachusetts DCR Division of Water Supply Protection Watershed System
313 CMR 11.09(2)(a)(25) / DWSP access plans prohibit possession of metal detectors or similar devices on Watershed System property.
Important exceptions: Confirm exact DWSP ownership/boundary; this prohibition is not projected onto unrelated municipal/private parcels within a watershed geography.
Official source — www.mass.gov · Supporting official source — www.mass.gov · Verified
Massachusetts DCR property outside qualifying coastal/inland sandy beaches
302 CMR 12.04(12) bars metal-detector use except on coastal/inland sandy beaches or with DCR personnel permission for locating lost personal property.
Important exceptions: Resource damage/removal and archaeological investigation remain independently restricted by 302 CMR 12.04(21)-(23).
Official source — www.mass.gov · Supporting official source — www.mass.gov · Verified
Massachusetts municipal parks/open-space systems
DCR regulations are not projected onto municipal land. Local bylaws, conservation restrictions and property-manager permission control.
Important exceptions: Town beaches, conservation lands, cemeteries and historic sites may have distinct rules.
Official source — www.mass.gov · Verified
Massachusetts NPS-listed partnership/trail units
NPS listing does not establish NPS ownership of every parcel. Apply 36 CFR §2.1 only where NPS administers the land.
Important exceptions: Partner/state/local/private parcel rules control outside NPS-administered land.
Official source — www.nps.gov · Supporting official source — www.ecfr.gov · Verified
Miami-Dade County Parks
Rule 8(e) prohibits excavation or use of metal detectors unless authorized by permit or easement.
Important exceptions: Archaeologically sensitive areas have additional artifact-protection rules.
Official source — www.miamidade.gov · Verified
Michigan
Metal detecting is allowed at the park, subject to historic/archaeological exclusions, staff review of recovered items, small-tool/minimal-disturbance limits and restoration.
Important exceptions: No detecting at designated historic or archaeological sites. Artifacts stay in place; recovered items must be checked by unit staff; large-scale digging is not allowed absent a DNR-authorized archaeological project.
Official source — www.michigan.gov · Supporting official source — www.michigan.gov · Verified
Michigan
Metal detecting is allowed only within the DNR-designated open areas shown for the specific park. All other park areas remain outside this authorization.
Important exceptions: Historic/archaeological sites remain excluded; recovered items must be checked by staff; minimal disturbance only and disturbed material must be replaced.
Official source — www.michigan.gov · Supporting official source — www.michigan.gov · Verified
Michigan
Michigan DNR lists Flint State Park as metal detecting by permit only and directs users to Genesee County Parks.
Important exceptions: A permit is not blanket authority to disturb historic/archaeological resources or disregard posted closures and recovery restrictions.
Official source — www.michigan.gov · Supporting official source — geneseecountyparks.org · Verified
Michigan
Michigan DNR states metal detecting is allowed in areas specifically designated as open. No current detector-page designation was found for these park identities, so ordinary detecting should not be inferred.
Important exceptions: A future DNR designation or park-specific written direction can change this classification; verify current park postings before travel.
Official source — www.michigan.gov · Supporting official source — www.michigan.gov · Verified
Michigan
Michigan DNR expressly excludes designated historic and archaeological sites from recreational metal detecting.
Important exceptions: Authorized archaeological work follows separate professional permits. Public visitation never implies detector/recovery permission.
Official source — www.michigan.gov · Supporting official source — www.michigan.gov · Verified
Michigan
The Wildlife Division roster establishes the public-land identity and hunting access, not metal-detecting or ground-disturbance permission. Confirm the planned detector/recovery activity with the responsible land management office before use.
Important exceptions: Research or collection that violates state-land rules requires a land-use permit; other resource and archaeological laws remain applicable.
Official source — www.michigan.gov · Supporting official source — www.michigan.gov · Verified
Michigan
No blanket State Forest detector authorization is inferred from general public access. Confirm the exact parcel/use with DNR and avoid historic/archaeological resources.
Important exceptions: State forest campgrounds/recreation sites can have Parks and Recreation rules or site orders. Cultural/scientific work may require a land-use permit.
Official source — www.michigan.gov · Supporting official source — www.michigan.gov · Verified
Milwaukee County, Wisconsin
Milwaukee County states soil disturbance for activities such as metal detectors is prohibited unless authorized by a written Parks permit.
Important exceptions: Sensitive natural areas, utilities, contaminated soils and other park restrictions may prevent digging even where access is otherwise public.
Official source — county.milwaukee.gov · Verified
Minnesota
Minnesota DNR expressly prohibits use of metal detectors in state parks and state recreation areas. Separate state-land archaeology rules also prohibit unlicensed searching for or removal of archaeological material.
Important exceptions: Qualified archaeological work requires state archaeology licensing and the applicable research authorization; this is not a recreational exception.
Official source — www.dnr.state.mn.us · Supporting official source — www.dnr.state.mn.us · Verified
Minnesota
State forests and trails are open to many listed recreation uses, but the DNR does not list recreational metal detecting as a blanket authorized use. Cultural-resource search/removal on state lands is separately restricted, so exact manager/parcel confirmation is required before detecting or digging.
Important exceptions: Private inholdings require owner permission; special closures, forest/trail rules and protected-resource laws remain controlling.
Official source — www.dnr.state.mn.us · Supporting official source — www.dnr.state.mn.us · Verified
Minnesota
Scientific and Natural Areas prohibit collecting rocks or fossils and are managed to keep natural features undisturbed. Recreational detecting/recovery is therefore not treated as authorized.
Important exceptions: Narrow scientific collections may be allowed through an applicable permit; site-specific allowed activities do not authorize resource collection.
Official source — www.dnr.state.mn.us · Supporting official source — www.dnr.state.mn.us · Verified
Minnesota
Minnesota WMA hunting/trapping/public access is not converted into metal-detecting permission. WMA rules prohibit destruction/removal of property outside stated exceptions and direct users to current site-specific restrictions, so exact manager confirmation is required.
Important exceptions: Special restrictions apply at named WMAs; closed hours, sanctuary areas and permit requirements can vary. Protected archaeological/historic resources remain restricted.
Official source — www.dnr.state.mn.us · Supporting official source — www.dnr.state.mn.us · Verified
Minnesota
A corridor designation is not a blanket NPS ownership claim. The exact underlying parcel owner/manager controls; direct NPS parcels inherit 36 CFR 2.1 restrictions.
Important exceptions: Private, state, local, tribal and other partner parcels can have different rules. No permission is inferred from route/corridor status.
Official source — www.nps.gov · Supporting official source — www.ecfr.gov · Verified
Minnesota
Forest Service recreational detector guidance does not authorize searching for protected archaeological or historic resources. Exact district/location conditions and closures must be checked before detector use or recovery.
Important exceptions: Archaeological/historic resources, wilderness/specially protected areas, private inholdings and local closures remain restricted.
Official source — www.fs.usda.gov · Supporting official source — www.fs.usda.gov · Verified
Minnesota
Local park access is not treated as blanket metal-detecting permission. Check the current ordinance, soil-disturbance/resource-removal rules and any permit requirement for the exact park.
Important exceptions: Rules can vary by park, facility, beach, historic site and season.
Official source — www.revisor.mn.gov · Supporting official source — www.dnr.state.mn.us · Verified
Mishawaka, Indiana
Mishawaka currently provides a metal-detecting permit pathway requiring an annual permit sticker/card and identification; activity remains subject to park restrictions and cannot interfere with normal public use.
Important exceptions: The golf course is excluded and site conditions or events can restrict use. Permit possession does not authorize artifact theft, trespass or protected-resource disturbance.
Official source — mishawaka.in.gov · Supporting official source — mishawaka.in.gov · Verified
Mississippi public archaeological / Mississippi Landmark properties
Mississippi Antiquities Law and Mississippi Landmark permitting protect significant archaeological/historic resources on public property. Recreational detector searching/recovery is not treated as a routine permission at these historic properties.
Important exceptions: This is a resource-protection/search restriction, not a statement that every conceivable modern lost-item query is identically regulated. Obtain property-specific authority before any detector use or disturbance.
Official source — www.mdah.ms.gov · Supporting official source — www.law.cornell.edu · Verified
Mississippi State Fishing Lakes
40 Miss. Code R. 3-2.1 expressly prohibits the use of metal detectors and magnet fishing on lake property.
Important exceptions: Fishing access, camping and boating permissions do not create an exception to the detector prohibition.
Official source — www.law.cornell.edu · Supporting official source — www.eregulations.com · Verified
Mississippi State Parks
40 Miss. Code R. 6-1.2 states that no one shall use metal detectors on any Mississippi State Park.
Important exceptions: The same regulation expressly says its rules do not apply to Shepard State Park, which is operated and maintained by the City of Gautier. Shepard must be evaluated under its operator-specific rule instead of this statewide prohibition.
Official source — www.law.cornell.edu · Supporting official source — www.eregulations.com · Verified
Mississippi Wildlife Management Areas
40 Miss. Code R. 2-1.1 states that no one shall use metal detectors on any Wildlife Management Area.
Important exceptions: Underlying USFS/Corps/private ownership does not relax the WMA activity rule while the property is being used as an MDWFP WMA.
Official source — www.law.cornell.edu · Supporting official source — www.eregulations.com · Verified
Missouri
Missouri State Parks currently allows metal detecting only on designated beaches in 11 named state parks. Annual registration is required; hours and seasonal availability vary by park, recovery tools are size-limited, vegetation may not be disturbed, and historical or archaeological finds must be reported to park staff.
Important exceptions: The registration does not authorize detecting outside the designated beach/shoreline area. Pomme de Terre, Harry S Truman, Mark Twain and Watkins Mill have seasonal closure or special access limits in the current schedule.
Official source — mostateparks.com · Supporting official source — mostateparks.com · Verified
Missouri
Missouri State Parks states that metal detecting can only take place on designated beaches in the parks listed in its current registration program. State Park properties not on that list do not inherit a detector-use exception from ordinary public access.
Important exceptions: A later written park order or newly added approved beach would control. Confirm the current official registration list before travel.
Official source — mostateparks.com · Supporting official source — mostateparks.com · Verified
Missouri
Missouri State Parks protects historical and archaeological resources and restricts metal detecting to designated beaches in the specifically listed recreation parks. State Historic Sites are not part of that approved beach program and protected objects may not be removed.
Important exceptions: Official archaeological or resource-management work conducted under appropriate authorization is different from recreational detecting.
Official source — mostateparks.com · Supporting official source — mostateparks.com · Verified
Missouri
Other State Parks system facilities do not appear in the current designated-beach metal-detecting list. Public visitation does not establish detector-recovery permission.
Important exceptions: Follow any facility-specific written order or manager authorization and all cultural-resource protections.
Official source — mostateparks.com · Supporting official source — mostateparks.com · Verified
Missouri
Current MDC area regulations prohibit digging or excavating and prohibit prospecting, exploring, mining, or extracting minerals, metals and other nonrenewable resources except where specifically approved by the Conservation Commission. Public hunting, fishing or hiking access therefore does not establish detector-recovery permission.
Important exceptions: Area signs and maps can impose additional restrictions. A general special-use permit cannot override activities the rules say may not be authorized, including digging/excavating and prospecting/extraction.
Official source — mdc.mo.gov · Supporting official source — mdc.mo.gov · Verified
Missouri
Missouri Natural Areas are designated across multiple ownerships, including MDC, State Parks, Forest Service, USACE and private conservation ownership. Natural-area designation is protective and does not create a recreational detector-recovery right.
Important exceptions: Apply the exact underlying owner rule and any more protective natural-area restriction. Do not infer access or permission from the statewide natural-area listing.
Official source — mdc.mo.gov · Supporting official source — mostateparks.com · Verified
Missouri
National historic trails cross a mixture of federal, state, local and private property. NPS metal-detector restrictions apply to NPS-administered property, not automatically to every parcel crossed by the trail.
Important exceptions: Identify the exact parcel owner before detecting; protected archaeological and historic resources remain protected regardless of ordinary access.
Official source — www.nps.gov · Supporting official source — www.ecfr.gov · Verified
Missouri
Pilot Knob National Wildlife Refuge is closed to public entry to protect endangered-species habitat and for public safety. Recreational metal detecting is therefore not available.
Important exceptions: Only official or specifically authorized access may occur.
Official source — www.fws.gov · Supporting official source — www.fws.gov · Verified
Missouri
Mark Twain National Forest guidance allows limited recreational mineral/rock/fossil collecting from the surface and restricts excavation, wilderness/cave collecting and disturbance of historical or archaeological resources. Metal-detector use must remain compatible with these protections and any site-specific closure.
Important exceptions: No archaeological or historic-resource searching; no collection in wilderness areas or caves under the cited collecting guidance; verify exact district land ownership because National Forest lands are intermingled with private land.
Official source — www.fs.usda.gov · Supporting official source — www.fs.usda.gov · Verified
Missouri
USACE recreation rules protect archaeological and historic resources and can restrict digging and detector use to specifically authorized or designated areas. Missouri projects can also contain state, county or other partner-managed recreation parcels with different rules.
Important exceptions: Confirm the exact parcel manager and current project order. A state park or county beach at a Corps reservoir does not make every federal shoreline parcel open.
Official source — www.nwk.usace.army.mil · Supporting official source — www.mvs.usace.army.mil · Verified
Missouri
City and county park systems can regulate digging, resource removal and metal-detector use independently of Missouri State Parks. Public park access is not a substitute for checking the current local rule.
Important exceptions: Historic sites, preserves, athletic fields, landscaped areas and special-use properties may have stricter restrictions.
Official source — www.stlouis-mo.gov · Supporting official source — kcparks.org · Verified
Mixed-ownership NPS-associated trail/corridor property in Maine
The Appalachian Trail crosses NPS, Forest Service, State, nonprofit and other ownership. Direct NPS-administered property follows 36 CFR 2.1 metal-detector restrictions; other parcels follow their actual owner/manager rule.
Important exceptions: Never apply the NPS detector prohibition to the entire trail corridor without parcel ownership confirmation.
Official source — www.nps.gov · Supporting official source — www.ecfr.gov · Verified
Montana
Montana FWP public-use rules prohibit use of a mineral or metal detector, magnetometer or other metal-detecting device at public use sites without written permission from the department. Topsoil/subsoil and cultural, archaeological and paleontological resources also may not be disturbed or removed.
Important exceptions: A conservation license or ordinary park, hunting, fishing, camping or boating access is not detector permission. Written authorization must cover the exact site/activity, and protected resources remain off limits.
Official source — fwp.mt.gov · Supporting official source — fwp.mt.gov · Verified
Montana
Makoshika State Park specifically asks visitors not to bring metal detectors and prohibits digging, collecting or removal of fossils and artifacts.
Important exceptions: Scientific or official activity is outside ordinary recreational use and requires the appropriate agency authorization.
Official source — fwp.mt.gov · Supporting official source — fwp.mt.gov · Verified
Montana
State Trust Land recreation requires the appropriate license. General recreation does not authorize disturbance of archaeological, historical or paleontological sites; special or uniquely impactful recreation can require a Special Recreational Use License.
Important exceptions: Legal access, lessee notification, closures, existing lease rights and any SRUL requirement must be checked for the exact parcel. A conservation license is access authorization, not blanket excavation or recovery permission.
Official source — dnrc.mt.gov · Supporting official source — dnrc.mt.gov · Verified
Montana
BLM allows lawful metal-detector use on suitable public lands, but cultural materials may not be removed, damaged, disturbed or excavated. Mining claims, closures, special designations, developed sites and other land-status restrictions can further limit use.
Important exceptions: Modern money may be collected where otherwise lawful; artifacts and qualifying historic cultural materials are protected. Confirm the exact parcel, active claims, closure orders and special-area rules before digging.
Official source — www.blm.gov · Supporting official source — www.blm.gov · Verified
Montana
A national trail or corridor identity does not make every segment NPS-administered. NPS detector/resource restrictions apply on NPS-administered parcels; other segments follow the actual landowner/manager rules.
Important exceptions: Do not use an NPS corridor name as evidence of permission or ownership for a particular detecting location.
Official source — www.nps.gov · Supporting official source — www.nps.gov · Verified
Montana
National Forest access is not blanket detector or excavation permission. Archaeological and historic resources, wilderness, developed sites, active mining claims, special orders and land-status restrictions can prohibit or limit detecting and recovery.
Important exceptions: Confirm the exact National Forest/ranger district, current orders, mining claims and cultural-resource conditions before detecting or digging.
Official source — www.fs.usda.gov · Supporting official source — www.fs.usda.gov · Verified
Montana
Fort Peck is a USACE project with recreation areas operated by USACE and partners. Detector use must follow 36 CFR Part 327, project rules, protected-resource restrictions and the rule of the actual recreation-area manager.
Important exceptions: Lake access does not mean every shoreline parcel is Corps-managed or open to detecting. Confirm the exact recreation area and current manager.
Official source — www.nwo.usace.army.mil · Supporting official source — www.ecfr.gov · Verified
Montana
Ordinary public access to a municipal park, trail or conservation area does not establish permission to detect, excavate or remove objects. Check the current local ordinance and obtain manager approval where required.
Important exceptions: Historic sites, conservation lands, irrigation/utilities, athletic areas and landscaped surfaces can have additional restrictions.
Official source — www.ci.missoula.mt.us · Supporting official source — www.helenamt.gov · Verified
Montgomery Parks metal detectors and digging
Current Montgomery Parks rules prohibit using a metal detector or magnet and prohibit digging into park surfaces except as authorized by Permit or Park Directive.
Important exceptions: Archaeological excavation authorizations have professional requirements. A general reservation or ordinary park access is not detector permission.
Official source — montgomeryparks.org · Supporting official source — montgomeryparks.org · Verified
Multi-jurisdiction National Trails crossing Tennessee
National trail corridors cross multiple ownerships; NPS rules apply on NPS-administered park land, while the actual parcel manager controls elsewhere.
Important exceptions: Never project NPS detector rules onto non-NPS trail parcels or infer a detecting corridor from a trail line.
Official source — www.nps.gov · Verified
Nathaniel P. Reed Hobe Sound National Wildlife Refuge — detector prohibition
Current FWS rules expressly prohibit metal detectors on the refuge, along with artifact/antiquity searching and taking.
Important exceptions: No ordinary recreational detector exception is stated on the current facility rules page. Follow current refuge closures, hours and posted signs.
Official source — www.fws.gov · Verified
National Forest cooperative WMAs in West Virginia
WVDNR lists cooperative WMAs on National Forest lands and instructs users to contact the relevant National Forest for current rules; several areas include interspersed private ownership. The identity is not a detector-permission polygon.
Important exceptions: Verify the exact parcel/manager and whether WMA no-removal rules, Forest Service lost-item policy, local Forest Orders or private-land permission controls.
Official source — wvdnr.gov · Supporting official source — www.fs.usda.gov · Verified
National Forest System lands in Arkansas
Arkansas National Forest lands contain extensive historic and archaeological resources and site-specific restrictions. No current forest-wide source reviewed for the current data establishes unrestricted recreational detector use across all forest land, so individual site/forest confirmation is required and protected-resource searching remains prohibited.
Important exceptions: ARPA, federal cultural-resource law, wilderness/site closures and posted orders can be stricter. No archaeological or historic target locator is published.
Official source — www.fs.usda.gov · Supporting official source — www.fs.usda.gov · Verified
National Forest System lands in Virginia
Current Forest Service policy allows recreational searching for modern lost items in suitable National Forest locations where archaeological/historic resources are absent or not reasonably expected, subject to closures, land status and other laws.
Important exceptions: No archaeological/historic-resource searching or removal. Confirm exact district, ownership, Forest Orders, wilderness/special-area restrictions and digging impacts.
Official source — www.fs.usda.gov · Supporting official source — www.dhr.virginia.gov · Verified
National Forests in Alabama — developed recreation sites
Forest Service guidance distinguishes ordinary lost-item detecting in qualifying developed recreation areas from archaeological/historic-resource searching and other restricted contexts.
Important exceptions: Confirm current site status and stay within the developed recreation footprint; no archaeological/historic-resource searching, collection, or protected-site disturbance.
Official source — www.fs.usda.gov · Supporting official source — www.fs.usda.gov · Verified
National Forests in Alabama — forest-wide / undeveloped scope
Forest-wide records cannot safely be converted to detector permission because land status, archaeological/historic resources, closures and developed-site distinctions vary.
Important exceptions: Use a site-specific developed recreation record when available; otherwise confirm the exact ranger-district location before detecting.
Official source — www.fs.usda.gov · Supporting official source — www.fs.usda.gov · Verified
National Forests in Mississippi
Current forest/recreation identity is established, but the data updates does not generalize detector permission from developed recreation, trail access or general public use.
Important exceptions: Federal archaeological/historic-resource protections remain controlling. Obtain current district/site confirmation for detector operation and recovery before travel.
Official source — www.fs.usda.gov · Supporting official source — www.fs.usda.gov · Verified
National Forests in North Carolina — general detector closure
National Forests in North Carolina Order 04-16-2010 prohibits possession or use of metal detectors for any purpose except in specifically designated open areas; qualifying special-use-permit and official-duty exceptions are listed.
Important exceptions: The six named open sites are separately represented. Archaeological/historic resources remain protected even inside a recreational detector area.
Official source — www.fs.usda.gov · Supporting official source — www.fs.usda.gov · Verified
National Forests in North Carolina — six designated detector areas
The North Carolina National Forest metal-detector order names six specific open areas. Beach sites are restricted to the sand-beach footprint; Ray Mine is defined by the attached map/site markings.
Important exceptions: Current closures/orders, archaeological-resource law, surface disturbance, vegetation protection and exact on-ground boundary markings still control.
Official source — www.fs.usda.gov · Supporting official source — www.fs.usda.gov · Verified
National Key Deer Refuge — detector prohibition
Current U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Florida Keys refuge guidance prohibits using metal detectors to search for antiquities, artifacts or treasure. The wording is purpose-specific, so it is not expanded into a blanket detector-use prohibition for every possible modern lost-item scenario; a modern lost-item search requires current refuge-specific confirmation.
Important exceptions: Collecting/taking protected refuge resources remains restricted. Wilderness, closures and sensitive-habitat rules remain controlling. No permission is inferred for modern lost-item searching.
Official source — www.fws.gov · Supporting official source — www.fws.gov · Verified
National Park Service park areas — 36 CFR §2.1
36 CFR §2.1 prohibits possessing or using metal detectors and related detecting devices in National Park Service park areas. The same section also prohibits digging, disturbing, removing or damaging protected natural, cultural and archaeological resources. current data uses this federal rule only for public visitor/reference points inside identified Florida NPS units; no search-target coordinates are exposed.
Important exceptions: The detector prohibition does not apply when a device is broken down and packed to prevent use, to navigation/safe-operation equipment for boats or aircraft, or to detectors used for authorized scientific, mining or administrative activities. These are not ordinary recreational detecting permissions. Park-specific closures and superintendent rules may be stricter.
Official source — www.ecfr.gov · Verified
Nebraska
Nebraska generally prohibits possession and use of metal detectors on state park property, but allows them year-round at designated state recreation area swimming beaches that are posted open. From May 22 through September 7, use is limited to 6:00 a.m.–9:00 a.m.; detector use must remain below the vegetation line above the beach, and tool, litter and found-property rules apply.
Important exceptions: State Parks and State Historical Parks are expressly prohibited except for an owner searching for a specific lost item by prior arrangement with the Park Superintendent. Historical, archaeological and paleontological items must be left undisturbed and reported.
Official source — www.law.cornell.edu · Supporting official source — outdoornebraska.gov · Verified
Nebraska
Nebraska expressly prohibits metal detector use in State Parks and State Historical Parks. The narrow exception is for an owner of a specific lost item who has made prior arrangements with the Park Superintendent. Public property, soil, rock, mineral formations, artifacts, relics, and historic or prehistoric features also may not be disturbed or removed without authorization.
Important exceptions: Specific lost-item recovery may be arranged in advance with the Park Superintendent. This does not create general recreational detecting permission.
Official source — www.law.cornell.edu · Supporting official source — outdoornebraska.gov · Verified
Nebraska
Nebraska WMAs are open for listed recreational uses, but current WMA rules make it unlawful to possess, destroy, injure, deface, remove, or disturb soil, rock, mineral formations, petrified wood, artifacts, relics, historic or prehistoric features, or other public property. Hunting/public access therefore is not metal-detecting or recovery permission.
Important exceptions: Some roster entries are NRD, USFWS, power-district, or other partner properties and may have additional owner rules. Special authorization can exist for management purposes, but recreational detector recovery must not be inferred.
Official source — outdoornebraska.gov · Supporting official source — history.nebraska.gov · Verified
Nebraska
A national trail or corridor designation does not make every Nebraska parcel NPS-owned. Determine the actual parcel owner and manager before detecting; NPS-administered federal land remains subject to federal archaeological and resource-protection rules.
Important exceptions: Private, state, local, tribal and other federal parcels retain their own rules.
Official source — www.nps.gov · Supporting official source — history.nebraska.gov · Verified
Nebraska federal lands
Forest Service guidance recognizes recreational hand-held detector use for recent lost coins, jewelry and incidental items with no historical value, generally without a special-use permit, only where archaeological or historic resources are absent. Searching for archaeological/historical remains is protected by ARPA and 36 CFR 261.9; treasure trove requires a special-use permit, and mineral prospecting follows mining rules.
Important exceptions: Stop immediately if cultural material or a likely archaeological/historic context is encountered. Toadstool Geologic Park is fossil-rich and receives a stricter no-collection/manager-confirmation treatment. Local closure orders and claimed mineral rights can control.
Official source — www.fs.usda.gov · Supporting official source — www.fs.usda.gov · Verified
Nebraska local government
Nebraska’s 23 NRDs are autonomous local government units. Public recreation access at one NRD property does not create statewide detector permission. Confirm the exact district, tract, posted restrictions, cultural-resource protections, digging and recovery rules before detecting.
Important exceptions: NRD-managed entries appearing in the Game and Parks WMA roster may also be subject to WMA public-use restrictions and site-specific agreements.
Official source — www.nrdnet.org · Supporting official source — outdoornebraska.gov · Verified
Nevada
Nevada State Parks states that metal detecting is permitted only in designated areas with permission of the park supervisor. General park access is not detector permission.
Important exceptions: Site-specific park rules may be stricter. Do not disturb protected historic, archaeological, fossil, geological or other park resources.
Official source — parks.nv.gov · Supporting official source — parks.nv.gov · Verified
Nevada
Lahontan State Recreation Area currently states that metal detecting season runs from October 1 through April 1. The statewide supervisor/designated-area framework and all resource protections still apply.
Important exceptions: Confirm current park-supervisor instructions and designated areas before use; seasonal access does not authorize protected-resource recovery.
Official source — parks.nv.gov · Supporting official source — parks.nv.gov · Verified
Nevada
Berlin-Ichthyosaur State Park expressly states that metal detecting is prohibited and that historic structures, artifacts, rocks, fossils and other features may not be removed, disturbed or damaged.
Important exceptions: Applies to Berlin-Ichthyosaur State Park; do not generalize this site-specific prohibition to parks governed by the supervisor/designated-area pathway.
Official source — parks.nv.gov · Supporting official source — parks.nv.gov · Verified
Nevada
NDOW manages 13 WMAs for wildlife and compatible public recreation. Current WMA pages provide activity/trespass restrictions, but hunting, fishing, hiking or wildlife-viewing access does not itself establish metal-detecting, excavation or object-recovery permission.
Important exceptions: Confirm the exact WMA, current closures/postings, underlying land status and resource protections before detector use or recovery.
Official source — www.ndow.org · Supporting official source — www.ndow.org · Verified
Nevada
These cooperative WMAs include non-state ownership/easement arrangements. Public fishing/hunting or compatible recreation access does not establish detector, digging or recovery rights.
Important exceptions: Confirm the cooperating landowner/easement terms, posted access, exact parcel and any cultural/resource restrictions before detector use.
Official source — www.ndow.org · Supporting official source — www.ndow.org · Verified
Nevada
Current BLM guidance allows prospecting with hand tools including metal detectors on appropriate public lands with only minor surface disturbance, but developed recreation sites, claims and special designations can restrict use. Cultural materials and historic sites may not be removed, damaged, disturbed or excavated; only modern money may be collected.
Important exceptions: Verify the exact BLM parcel, active claims, wilderness/WSA or monument/NCA restrictions, closure orders and intended target before detecting or recovery.
Official source — www.blm.gov · Supporting official source — www.blm.gov · Verified
Nevada
NPS listing of a multi-jurisdiction trail does not make the entire Nevada corridor NPS-owned. Apply the federal NPS detector prohibition only on NPS-administered parcels and the actual owner/manager rule elsewhere.
Important exceptions: Historic and archaeological resources remain protected regardless of corridor ownership.
Official source — www.nps.gov · Supporting official source — www.nps.gov · Verified
Nevada
National Forest access is not blanket detector or digging permission. Exact site status, Forest Orders, developed recreation restrictions, cultural resources, wilderness and mining claims control detector use and recovery.
Important exceptions: Confirm the ranger district/site and current Forest Orders; do not disturb archaeological or historic resources.
Official source — www.fs.usda.gov · Supporting official source — www.fs.usda.gov · Verified
Nevada
FWS states that Anaho Island National Wildlife Refuge is closed to the public. It is a protected refuge identity, not a detecting destination.
Important exceptions: Wildlife may be viewed from permitted public shoreline locations outside the closed refuge; do not attempt entry or recovery.
Official source — www.fws.gov · Supporting official source — www.fws.gov · Verified
Nevada
Reno Parks states that metal detecting is allowed and that a free permit may be obtained at the Idlewild Park Office.
Important exceptions: Permit status does not authorize damage, excavation contrary to park rules, or protected cultural-resource recovery; confirm current permit terms.
Official source — reno.gov · Supporting official source — reno.gov · Verified
Nevada
Washoe County states that metal detecting is allowed in county parks except Bowers Mansion, while County Code restricts digging/removal/disturbance of turf, humus, plants and related park resources except in authorized portions.
Important exceptions: Use only where recovery can comply with the County Code and current park-specific rules; Bowers Mansion has a separate prohibition.
Official source — www.washoecounty.gov · Supporting official source — www.washoecounty.gov · Verified
Nevada
Washoe County expressly excludes Bowers Mansion Regional Park from its otherwise conditional metal-detecting allowance because of the property’s historical significance.
Important exceptions: Applies specifically to Bowers Mansion Regional Park.
Official source — www.washoecounty.gov · Supporting official source — www.washoecounty.gov · Verified
Nevada
Wetlands Park includes sensitive habitat, a protected archaeological district and federal land. Activities involving research, sampling or collection that disturb soil or remove rocks/material require written approval from Clark County.
Important exceptions: Do not infer detector recovery permission from ordinary park access. Confirm whether the exact activity is authorized in writing and respect federal/archaeological constraints.
Official source — www.clarkcountynv.gov · Supporting official source — www.clarkcountynv.gov · Verified
New Hampshire DNCR beach shorelines
Ncr 731.19(b) permits metal detectors along shoreline of beaches unless otherwise posted. Ncr 731.20(a) permits sand-beach digging only if holes are completely filled and not deeper than 12 inches.
Important exceptions: This is not whole-property permission. Posted restrictions, archaeological/historic protections, and the explicit Ncr 731.19(c) prohibition remain controlling.
Official source — gc.nh.gov · Supporting official source — www.nhstateparks.org · Verified
New Hampshire DNCR properties — general rule
Ncr 731.19(a) bars metal detectors on department properties unless otherwise stated, permitted by special-use permit under Ncr 740, or authorized by department personnel. Ncr 731.20 separately restricts digging/ground disturbance.
Important exceptions: Ncr 731.19(b) permits detectors along shoreline of beaches unless posted; historic sites, natural areas and Odiorne Point are expressly prohibited under subsection (c).
Official source — gc.nh.gov · Supporting official source — www.nhstateparks.org · Verified
New Hampshire Fish and Game Department-controlled lands
Fis 902.02 regulates field investigations including metal detection that could discover, yield, or alter historic resources and provides a Special Use Permit pathway; other disturbance/removal restrictions apply.
Important exceptions: This row does not convert hunting/fishing/public access into general relic-hunting permission.
Official source — www.gc.nh.gov · Supporting official source — www.wildlife.nh.gov · Verified
New Hampshire municipal parks/open-space systems
Local ownership, municipal codes and property-manager rules control. DNCR state-park rules are not projected onto municipal land.
Important exceptions: Rules vary by parcel and may separately restrict digging, removal, historic resources or beach activities.
Official source — www.nh.gov · Verified
New Hampshire state historic sites, natural areas, and Odiorne Point State Park
Ncr 731.19(c) expressly prohibits metal detectors in these categories.
Important exceptions: No beach-shoreline exception is projected into these expressly prohibited properties.
Official source — gc.nh.gov · Supporting official source — www.nhstateparks.org · Verified
New Jersey mixed-ownership NPS-administered trails/reserve corridors
NPS lists these New Jersey identities, but their corridor/reserve structure spans multiple underlying jurisdictions. Detector legality follows the exact parcel owner/manager and protected-resource law, not the program boundary alone.
Important exceptions: NPS-administered federal parcels remain subject to federal resource protections; state, local and private parcels may have different rules.
Official source — www.nps.gov · Verified
New Jersey State Park Service historic sites
State Park Service property is subject to N.J.A.C. 7:2-2.16. Current historic-site guidance also states metal-detecting devices are not permitted without a special-use permit and warns that site-specific variations apply.
Important exceptions: Historically significant areas are especially constrained and a permit may be unavailable. Exact site superintendent approval and the current site rule control.
Official source — www.nj.gov · Supporting official source — dep.nj.gov · Verified
New Jersey State Park Service property — general detector permit rule
N.J.A.C. 7:2-2.16 states that a person shall not use a metal detector or similar device without a permit issued by the Superintendent or designee. The permit may limit location, hours and days, and will not be issued for significant historical/other-value areas or where incompatible with resource protection or public use.
Important exceptions: A directory listing, admission, beach access, camping reservation or other recreational access is not a detector permit. Site-specific restrictions can be stricter.
Official source — www.nj.gov · Supporting official source — dep.nj.gov · Verified
New Jersey Wildlife Management Areas
NJDEP Fish & Wildlife WMA regulations expressly list metal detecting among prohibited activities. Hunting, fishing, wildlife access and WMA permits for other activities do not create detector permission.
Important exceptions: Only a specific written Fish & Wildlife authorization for an official/approved purpose could supersede the public prohibition; do not treat general WMA permit programs as detector permits.
Official source — dep.nj.gov · Supporting official source — dep.nj.gov · Verified
New Mexico
NMAC 19.5.2.24 prohibits metal detecting within a state park unless the superintendent gives permission for qualifying scientific activities or to retrieve a lost item.
Important exceptions: Permission is purpose- and site-specific; cultural-resource review, closures, resource-protection rules, and superintendent conditions remain controlling.
Official source — wwwapps.emnrd.nm.gov · Supporting official source — www.emnrd.nm.gov · Verified
New Mexico
Current NMDOW land-access rules state that individuals may not deface or remove rocks, minerals, plants, firewood or man-made features including artifacts on WMAs; ordinary hunting/fishing access does not authorize detector recovery.
Important exceptions: Access itself varies by WMA, season and posted rule. Any activity outside the authorized purpose, especially excavation or recovery, requires the controlling manager’s authorization and compliance with cultural-resource law.
Official source — wildlife.dgf.nm.gov · Supporting official source — wildlife.dgf.nm.gov · Verified
New Mexico
BLM public access does not authorize collecting cultural/historic objects or disturbing protected archaeological sites. Detector use depends on the exact land status, closures, mineral/claim status and resource protections.
Important exceptions: Wilderness, monuments, conservation lands, archaeological sites, paleontological resources, active mining claims and special closures can be stricter. Modern money is not a blanket authorization to dig or disturb protected resources.
Official source — www.blm.gov · Supporting official source — www.blm.gov · Verified
New Mexico
An NPS program/trail identity does not make every corridor segment NPS-owned. Determine the exact parcel manager before applying detector, excavation or artifact-recovery rules.
Important exceptions: Direct NPS-administered land remains subject to federal NPS resource protections; state, tribal, local and private parcels follow their own controlling rules.
Official source — www.nps.gov · Supporting official source — www.nps.gov · Verified
New Mexico
San Andres National Wildlife Refuge lies within White Sands Missile Range and is not open to general public access; detector searching is therefore not an available recreational pathway.
Important exceptions: Agency-authorized official or research access does not create general public detector permission.
Official source — www.fws.gov · Supporting official source — www.fws.gov · Verified
New Mexico
National Forest access does not authorize disturbance or removal of archaeological/historic resources. Detector use must comply with cultural-resource protections, mining-claim rights, closure orders and district/site restrictions.
Important exceptions: Active mining claims, archaeological/historic sites, wilderness and closure-order areas can restrict or prohibit detecting/recovery.
Official source — www.fs.usda.gov · Supporting official source — www.fs.usda.gov · Verified
New Mexico
USACE detector use is controlled by 36 CFR Part 327 and project-specific restrictions; archaeological/historic resources are protected and individual projects can designate or close areas.
Important exceptions: Do not infer permission from shoreline access, low water, camping, boating or fishing. Confirm the exact project and zone before searching or digging.
Official source — www.spa.usace.army.mil · Supporting official source — www.ecfr.gov · Verified
New Mexico
The State Land Office recreational access pathway prohibits disturbing/removing historical, archaeological, paleontological and cultural resources and does not authorize mineral exploration/mining or collection of valuable rocks/minerals.
Important exceptions: Only lands included in the current permit are accessible. Activities outside the permit require separate State Land Office approval.
Official source — openforadventure.nmstatelands.org · Supporting official source — wildlife.dgf.nm.gov · Verified
New Mexico
Open Gate provides public access only for the activities and conditions established for each participating private property; it is not general metal-detecting or excavation permission.
Important exceptions: Private-owner terms and the specific Open Gate agreement control. Obtain explicit written permission for detecting/recovery if it is not an authorized activity.
Official source — wildlife.dgf.nm.gov · Supporting official source — wildlife.dgf.nm.gov · Verified
New Mexico
State-park and federal rules do not automatically govern municipal parks and open spaces. Metal detecting, digging and resource removal depend on the local code, property rules, sensitive-area protections and manager authorization.
Important exceptions: Historic plazas, cultural sites, preserves, archaeological areas and landscaped facilities may be more restrictive than general recreation areas.
Official source — www.cabq.gov · Supporting official source — santafenm.gov · Verified
New York City Parks metal detecting
NYC Parks operates a metal-detector permit program; exact permitted sites/zones, closed beaches and protected landscaped/resource areas control.
Important exceptions: A permit is not blanket citywide park permission.
Official source — www.nycgovparks.org · Supporting official source — www.nycgovparks.org · Verified
New York DEC boat launches and waterway access sites
ONR-3 covers boat launches/waterway access sites and does not create a general recreational detector pathway there.
Important exceptions: A narrow personal lost-property TRP may apply where its exact conditions are met.
Official source — dec.ny.gov · Verified
New York DEC Conservation Easement lands
ONR-3 applies to conservation easement lands, but exact public recreation rights vary with the easement and recreation management plan.
Important exceptions: Do not infer detector/digging/recovery rights from general access.
Official source — dec.ny.gov · Verified
New York DEC designated campground beaches
DEC ONR-3 lists detector use at designated campground beaches as eligible for an Expedited Temporary Revocable Permit.
Important exceptions: An eligible TRP pathway is not permission without an issued permit and exact approved scope.
Official source — dec.ny.gov · Verified
New York DEC recently lost personal-property retrieval
DEC ONR-3 allows an Expedited TRP for the limited purpose of retrieving the applicant’s own recently lost personal property on State Land.
Important exceptions: This narrow exception is not general recreational treasure hunting.
Official source — dec.ny.gov · Verified
New York DEC State Land — general recreational metal detecting
ONR-3 states TRPs will not be issued for metal-detector activities on State Land that are not allowed by the policy.
Important exceptions: Separate current data records preserve the designated-campground-beach and recent-personal-property TRP pathways.
Official source — dec.ny.gov · Verified
New York DEC Wildlife Management Areas
6 NYCRR Part 51 states no person shall use or possess a metal detector afield except under written permit from DEC, with a licensed-surveyor exception for locating survey markers.
Important exceptions: Written permission does not override separate soil, mineral, archaeological or site-specific restrictions.
Official source — extapps.dec.ny.gov · Supporting official source — dec.ny.gov · Verified
New York major local park systems represented in the current data
Public park access is not detector or digging permission. Exact ordinance, park rule, posted restriction, cultural-resource control and manager requirement must be confirmed.
Important exceptions: This does not claim every New York local park system or parcel is represented.
Official source — www.buffalony.gov · Supporting official source — www.nassaucountyny.gov · Verified
New York NPS-listed mixed-ownership corridors/programs
Mixed trails, rivers, heritage/program listings and partner sites do not share one uniform detector rule.
Important exceptions: Direct NPS property is separately classified under the inherited federal protected-resource rule.
Official source — www.nps.gov · Verified
New York State Historic Sites — metal detecting
The current Saratoga-Capital metal-detector permit expressly states that metal detectors are prohibited in ALL NYS Historic Sites.
Important exceptions: current data uses system-level coverage rather than manufacturing an individual roster where current directory interfaces expose inconsistent counts.
Official source — parks.ny.gov · Supporting official source — parks.ny.gov · Verified
New York State Parks — Central Region metal detecting
Central Region maintains a specific metal-detector permit limited to designated sandy-beach use, seasonal dates, daylight hours, daily manager/designee reporting and restoration/recovery conditions.
Important exceptions: Sandy Island Beach and Selkirk Shores have a no-wading condition; current permit controls exact dates and conditions.
Official source — staffportal.parks.ny.gov · Supporting official source — staffportal.parks.ny.gov · Verified
New York State Parks — Long Island Region metal detecting
Long Island Region sells an annual metal-detector permit for designated areas at thirteen listed parks. Park-specific access maps, closures, historic-resource restrictions and recovery conditions remain controlling.
Important exceptions: The permit is not park-wide permission and expires December 31 regardless of issue date.
Official source — parks.ny.gov · Supporting official source — parks.ny.gov · Verified
New York State Parks — other park properties
New York State Parks uses region- and park-specific detector rules. No blanket statewide detector permission is inferred for other park properties.
Important exceptions: Check the exact park, regional office, current permit, posted closure and historic-resource restrictions.
Official source — parks.ny.gov · Verified
New York State Parks — other recreation facilities
Public access to trails, marinas, golf facilities, boat launches or other OPRHP recreation facilities is not detector or recovery permission.
Important exceptions: Confirm exact facility, manager, permit and posted resource restrictions.
Official source — parks.ny.gov · Verified
New York State Parks — Saratoga-Capital metal detecting
The 2025-2026 district permit authorizes designated beach areas only, with a $10 permit, limited digging tools, restoration and property/archaeological reporting requirements.
Important exceptions: The permit expressly prohibits detecting May 23 through September 7, 2026 and prohibits metal detectors in all NYS Historic Sites.
Official source — parks.ny.gov · Supporting official source — parks.ny.gov · Verified
North Carolina NPS-administered mixed-ownership national trails
National trails cross federal, state, local and private ownership. Detector status must be resolved for the exact parcel/segment rather than applying a single NPS rule across the full route.
Important exceptions: Where a segment is NPS-owned, federal NPS resource restrictions control; other landowners may be more or less restrictive.
Official source — www.nps.gov · Supporting official source — www.ecfr.gov · Verified
North Carolina State Forests
02 NCAC 60B.1028 prohibits metal-detector use on State Forest, State Recreational Forest or Educational State Forest property without a permit and separately restricts collection/removal of artifacts, minerals and natural resources.
Important exceptions: A detector permit does not automatically authorize collection or excavation; exact forest supervisor conditions and any separate collection authorization control.
Official source — www.ncagr.gov · Supporting official source — www.law.cornell.edu · Verified
North Carolina State Parks and recreation areas
NC State Parks rules state that metal detectors are not allowed except to locate lost personal property when authorized by a Special Use Permit; the administrative rule also makes metal-detector use a Special Use Permit activity.
Important exceptions: A permit is purpose- and location-specific and does not authorize artifact collecting, natural-resource removal, archaeology disturbance, digging outside approved conditions or use in closed areas.
Official source — www.ncparks.gov · Supporting official source — www.ncparks.gov · Verified
North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission Game Lands
NCWRC game-land access and hunting rules are property-specific. Public hunting/fishing access is not converted into hobby detector permission; archaeological-resource and artifact protections on state-owned land remain controlling.
Important exceptions: Confirm exact ownership/manager, any special game-land rule, archaeological-resource restrictions, digging/recovery method and written authorization if required before detecting.
Official source — www.ncwildlife.gov · Supporting official source — www.ncleg.gov · Verified
North Dakota
Reclamation project lands can be operated by different partners and have project-specific resource and recreation rules. Detector recovery is not inferred from general recreation access.
Important exceptions: Apply the exact managing entity's current rule at the proposed parcel and recreation area.
Official source — www.usbr.gov · Supporting official source — www.usbr.gov · Verified
North Dakota
Local parks are not governed by one statewide detector rule. Confirm the current municipal, county or park-district ordinance and exact site restrictions before detecting or digging.
Important exceptions: Historic, natural, cemetery, athletic and landscaped areas can have stricter rules.
Official source — www.bisparks.org · Supporting official source — www.fargoparks.com · Verified
North Dakota
North Dakota Administrative Code 58-02-08-16 prohibits using a device to locate or remove metallic objects or other objects of value from a state park. The director may approve archaeological surveys or law-enforcement use, and park staff may directly supervise detector use to find a lost item.
Important exceptions: A visitor searching for a lost item must work under direct park-staff supervision; ordinary recreation, beach use or camping does not create a detector exception.
Official source — ndlegis.gov · Supporting official source — www.parkrec.nd.gov · Verified
North Dakota
State historical sites and archaeological/cultural resources are protected. Public visitation does not authorize searching, excavation, disturbance or removal of archaeological, paleontological or historical material.
Important exceptions: Scientific investigation or excavation requires the applicable authorization; closed or sacred sites may have stricter access restrictions.
Official source — www.history.nd.gov · Supporting official source — www.history.nd.gov · Verified
North Dakota
North Dakota Game and Fish WMA rules allow compatible public use but prohibit removal of archaeological artifacts or cultural resources, gravel, fill, sod and other property without a permit issued by the director. Detector recovery therefore is not inferred from hunting, fishing, hiking or camping access.
Important exceptions: Area-specific rules and postings control; a director-issued permit may impose exact limits and conditions.
Official source — gf.nd.gov · Supporting official source — gf.nd.gov · Verified
North Dakota
North Dakota Department of Trust Lands currently lists metal detecting as a prohibited activity on School Trust Lands. Public access is generally non-vehicular and may also be posted closed or notification-required.
Important exceptions: Written authorization for another land use does not imply detector permission; current tract access postings must also be observed.
Official source — www.land.nd.gov · Supporting official source — www.land.nd.gov · Verified
North Dakota
PLOTS provides public hunting access on participating private lands. That access is not converted into permission to metal detect, dig or remove property; land ownership and current program terms must be confirmed.
Important exceptions: Posted restrictions and landowner rights control.
Official source — gf.nd.gov · Supporting official source — gf.nd.gov · Verified
North Dakota
A national trail designation does not mean every trail parcel is owned by the National Park Service. Apply the rule of the exact landowner or manager at the proposed location.
Important exceptions: Direct NPS-owned parcels remain subject to federal resource-protection rules.
Official source — www.nps.gov · Supporting official source — www.ecfr.gov · Verified
North Dakota
Refuge activities are site-specific. Current North Dakota refuge rules commonly protect plants, animals, artifacts and other natural materials from disturbance; activities not listed as open are not assumed permitted.
Important exceptions: Refuge-specific hunt/fish openings do not create detector-recovery permission.
Official source — www.fws.gov · Supporting official source — www.fws.gov · Verified
North Dakota
Stump Lake National Wildlife Refuge is currently closed to the public because the refuge islands are submerged and inaccessible.
Important exceptions: Future access changes must be confirmed from the refuge before travel.
Official source — www.fws.gov · Supporting official source — www.fws.gov · Verified
North Dakota
National Forest System rules protect archaeological and historical resources. Any detector use must be consistent with current unit orders, land status and resource-protection requirements; ordinary recreation access is not blanket recovery permission.
Important exceptions: Historic/archaeological searching and disturbance require applicable federal authorization.
Official source — www.fs.usda.gov · Supporting official source — www.fs.usda.gov · Verified
North Dakota
USACE recreation access does not itself authorize detector recovery. Confirm the current project order, designated recreation area and controlling partner before detecting or disturbing soil.
Important exceptions: Partner-operated parks around Corps reservoirs may have separate state, local, Tribal or federal rules.
Official source — www.nwo.usace.army.mil · Supporting official source — www.mvp.usace.army.mil · Verified
NPS-administered Arkansas portions of multi-jurisdiction National Historic Trails
NPS lists the historic trails in Arkansas, but trail corridors cross multiple ownerships. 36 CFR §2.1 prohibits metal detectors on NPS park areas; other parcels require their own landowner/jurisdiction rule.
Important exceptions: Never apply the NPS detector ban to a non-NPS parcel merely because a National Historic Trail route crosses it.
Official source — www.nps.gov · Supporting official source — www.ecfr.gov · Verified
NPS-listed mixed-ownership trails/program landscapes in Virginia
NPS-listed trails and partnership landscapes cross multiple ownerships. The exact parcel manager and controlling rule must be identified before applying any detector/recovery classification.
Important exceptions: If the exact parcel is NPS-administered park land, 36 CFR 2.1 resource/search restrictions apply.
Official source — www.nps.gov · Supporting official source — www.ecfr.gov · Verified
NPS-listed Ohio national trail corridors
NPS listing does not mean every trail parcel is NPS-owned. Apply NPS detector prohibition only on NPS-administered property and the exact owner/manager rule elsewhere.
Important exceptions: Do not project NPS rules onto non-NPS parcels.
Official source — www.nps.gov · Supporting official source — www.ecfr.gov · Verified
Ocala National Forest developed recreation sites
Forest Service policy recognizes ordinary recreational metal detecting for lost coins, jewelry and incidental modern metal items as common in developed campgrounds, swimming areas and picnic areas and states that this recreational use requires no permit. Site-specific closures and protected-resource rules still control.
Important exceptions: Searching for historic or prehistoric artifacts requires scientific authorization and cultural-resource laws apply; treasure-trove searching requires special authorization; mineral prospecting is governed separately by mining law and claim rules. If archaeological or historic resources are encountered, stop detecting and notify the Forest Service. This dataset does not infer submerged detecting or permission outside each listed developed recreation footprint.
Official source — www.fs.usda.gov · Verified
Ohio Division of Parks and Watercraft
OAC 1501:46-7-08 permits metal detectors on sand beach areas and mowed areas except mowed golf-course, rental-facility or campground areas, with immediate restoration of disturbed ground. Other Division areas require prior written area-manager permission.
Important exceptions: Archaeological/historical objects and other protected resources remain governed by separate protection rules.
Official source — codes.ohio.gov · Supporting official source — codes.ohio.gov · Verified
Ohio Division of Wildlife controlled lands
OAC 1501:31-9-01 bars concealment/burial, damage to artifacts and unauthorized removal of sand, gravel, stone and other substances on Division-controlled property. Public hunting status does not create a detector/digging authorization.
Important exceptions: Written chief permission may be required for removal/disturbance; posted/time/property-specific restrictions continue to apply.
Official source — codes.ohio.gov · Supporting official source — codes.ohio.gov · Verified
Ohio municipal / metro park systems
No statewide rule creates uniform metal-detecting permission across independent Ohio municipal and metro park systems. Confirm the exact park and current local rule before detecting or disturbing ground.
Important exceptions: A system-level record is a decision/navigation entry, not blanket permission for every parcel.
Official source — ohio.gov · Verified
Ohio State Forests
OAC 1501:3-2-20 prohibits detector use on Division lands/waters without prior written permission from the chief or authorized agent; separate rules also restrict digging/removal and protected features.
Important exceptions: Do not treat hunting access or trail access as detector permission.
Official source — codes.ohio.gov · Supporting official source — codes.ohio.gov · Verified
Ohio State Nature Preserves and Natural Areas
OAC 1501:17-3-02 prohibits collecting, removing, injuring, defacing, destroying or otherwise disturbing soil, sand, gravel, rocks, fossils, minerals and other substances; research collection may be approved by written permit. Access rules also restrict off-trail/use in permit-only preserves.
Important exceptions: A research permit is not represented as a recreational detecting permit.
Official source — codes.ohio.gov · Supporting official source — codes.ohio.gov · Verified
Oklahoma
Oklahoma State Parks’ current FAQ states that metal detecting and magnet fishing are prohibited at all state parks.
Important exceptions: No general recreational exception is published; contact the park only for administrative/lost-property handling, not as assumed detecting permission.
Official source — www.travelok.com · Supporting official source — www.travelok.com · Verified
Oklahoma
ODWC rules prohibit removing historical, cultural or archaeological artifacts and prohibit cutting, digging, damaging or removing soil, gravel, sand, earth, rocks, minerals or other natural resources without prior written approval. Public hunting/fishing access is not blanket recovery permission.
Important exceptions: Area-specific closures, refuge portions, federal ownership and special regulations can be stricter.
Official source — wildlifedepartment.com · Supporting official source — www.wildlifedepartment.com · Verified
Oklahoma
OLAP access is purpose- and property-specific. Walk-in hunting areas can prohibit other activities, and wildlife-viewing areas prohibit removal of minerals, fossils and artifacts. No detector/recovery right is inferred from enrollment.
Important exceptions: Current map-directory dates, signs and landowner restrictions control each property.
Official source — www.wildlifedepartment.com · Supporting official source — www.wildlifedepartment.com · Verified
Oklahoma
National historic trails cross mixed ownership. Apply NPS detector prohibition only to NPS-administered parcels; other parcels require the actual land manager’s rule.
Important exceptions: Direct NPS-administered property remains prohibited under 36 CFR 2.1.
Official source — www.nps.gov · Supporting official source — www.ecfr.gov · Verified
Oklahoma
Limited hunting access on military property is not recreational metal-detecting permission. Exact installation authorization is required.
Important exceptions: Installation security, range closures and controlled-hunt conditions control.
Official source — wildlifedepartment.com · Supporting official source — wildlifedepartment.com · Verified
Oklahoma federal lands
Forest Service detector guidance distinguishes recent lost-item recreational searching from archaeological/historical searching, treasure hunting and mineral prospecting. Local orders and cultural-resource protections control.
Important exceptions: Stop if cultural material is encountered; mining/special-use rules may apply depending on purpose.
Official source — www.fs.usda.gov · Supporting official source — www.fs.usda.gov · Verified
Oklahoma local public parks
Public park access is not treated as permission to dig or remove property. Confirm the current municipal code and park manager before detecting or recovery.
Important exceptions: Historic/nature preserves, athletic fields, landscaped areas and special facilities may be stricter.
Official source — www.okc.gov · Supporting official source — www.cityoftulsa.org · Verified
Old Cahawba Archaeological Park
The current official visitor guidance states that Old Cahawba is an archaeological preserve and no metal detecting or digging is allowed.
Important exceptions: No recreational detector exception is inferred.
Official source — ahc.alabama.gov · Supporting official source — ahc.alabama.gov · Verified
Orange County Parks and Recreation — metal detector permit framework
Orange County requires a Metal Detector Use Permit for detector use at approved eligible Parks and Recreation sites. Detecting is limited to patron-use areas within known park boundaries and is subject to environmental, archaeological, historic, construction, structure and perimeter exclusions. A hand digging tool is permitted, holes should be no deeper than six inches and must be refilled immediately.
Important exceptions: Do not infer eligibility from public access alone. Wetlands, environmentally sensitive areas, archaeological sites, areas of historical significance, facilities/structures and construction areas are excluded. Detecting may not be permitted on partnership properties or lands not owned by Orange County. Activity must remain within known park boundaries, outside the stated 1,000-foot neighboring-house/commercial-industry perimeter restriction, during operating hours, and may be stopped by management. All finds must be reported to park staff; lost/stolen items may be confiscated and historical artifacts may be retained by the park.
Official source — www.orangecountyfl.net · Verified
Oregon
Metal detecting without a permit is allowed only in specifically listed park or ocean-shore areas and only within the published zones. Areas not on that list may be open only with an approved permit. Historic and cultural finds must be left in place, digging tools are tightly limited, and disturbed turf must be restored.
Important exceptions: The published no-permit list contains exact zones and seasonal/site conditions. The ocean shore and named parks must be checked against the current OPRD list before detecting.
Official source — stateparks.oregon.gov · Supporting official source — stateparks.oregon.gov · Verified
Oregon
ODFW public-use rules require a permit to dig or remove minerals, sand, gravel, rock or other material. Hunting, fishing or ordinary public access therefore is not detector-recovery permission.
Important exceptions: Site closures, wildlife protections, access permits and other area-specific regulations still apply.
Official source — secure.sos.state.or.us · Supporting official source — myodfw.com · Verified
Oregon
Public recreation access on state forest lands does not by itself establish permission to excavate or recover objects. Confirm the exact forest, recreation site, closures, resource protections and any required authorization before detecting or digging.
Important exceptions: Cultural resources, protected features, closures, active operations and locally posted restrictions control over general recreation access.
Official source — www.oregon.gov · Supporting official source — www.oregon.gov · Verified
Oregon
Recreational metal detector use can be compatible with suitable BLM public land, but active mining claims, developed sites, closures and protected cultural or historic resources can prohibit recovery or disturbance.
Important exceptions: Never disturb archaeological sites or protected historic objects. Verify the current land status and local office restrictions before recovery.
Official source — www.blm.gov · Supporting official source — www.blm.gov · Verified
Oregon
National Conservation Lands have designation-specific resource protections in addition to BLM-wide cultural-resource rules. A wilderness, Wilderness Study Area, monument or other special unit is not blanket detector-recovery permission.
Important exceptions: Wilderness restrictions, monument plans, closures, archaeological protections and mineral-estate status can control the exact location.
Official source — www.blm.gov · Supporting official source — www.blm.gov · Verified
Oregon
A national trail or corridor identity does not mean every segment is federally administered. NPS detector restrictions apply on NPS-administered lands; other segments follow the actual owner or manager rule.
Important exceptions: Do not treat the trail name itself as permission or as proof of NPS ownership.
Official source — www.nps.gov · Supporting official source — www.ecfr.gov · Verified
Oregon
National Wildlife Refuge public use is limited to activities authorized for the specific refuge, while federal rules protect antiquities and other resources from unauthorized search, removal or disturbance. Confirm the exact refuge rules before any detector use or lost-item recovery.
Important exceptions: Refuges can have closed islands, seasonal closures, sanctuary areas and site-specific public-use restrictions.
Official source — www.fws.gov · Supporting official source — www.ecfr.gov · Verified
Oregon
Forest Service guidance recognizes recreational metal detecting and prospecting as generally low-impact activities in suitable places, but archaeological and historic resources, mining claims, wilderness, closures, developed sites and surface-disturbance rules can change the result.
Important exceptions: Verify the exact ranger district, land status and closure orders; do not disturb protected cultural resources.
Official source — www.fs.usda.gov · Supporting official source — www.fs.usda.gov · Verified
Oregon
36 CFR 327.14 allows metal detectors on designated beaches or other previously disturbed areas unless prohibited by the District Commander. The exact project or park designation must be confirmed locally, and archaeological, historical and paleontological resources remain protected.
Important exceptions: Local project managers may prohibit detecting or define narrower zones than the nationwide rule.
Official source — www.ecfr.gov · Supporting official source — www.nwp.usace.army.mil · Verified
Oregon
Reclamation project identity does not establish blanket detector permission because recreation parcels may be managed by federal, state, county or concession partners. Confirm the exact recreation site, managing entity, cultural-resource restrictions and excavation rules before detecting.
Important exceptions: Rules can differ within one project among reservoir shoreline, developed recreation areas and partner-managed parcels.
Official source — www.usbr.gov · Supporting official source — www.usbr.gov · Verified
Oregon
Many state lands are open for lawful recreation, but cultural resources and archaeological sites are protected and mineral/material collection has separate limits. Confirm the exact parcel and any required authorization before detector recovery or ground disturbance.
Important exceptions: Public access, mineral rights, active leases, fire restrictions and cultural-resource protections can change the result.
Official source — www.oregon.gov · Supporting official source — www.oregon.gov · Verified
Oregon
Oregon-owned waterways support lawful public recreation and limited natural-material collection in appropriate places, but ownership boundaries can be complex and archaeological or cultural resources remain protected. Detector use and recovery must stay within lawful public use and the exact ownership/manager rules.
Important exceptions: Maps are not permission boundaries; private uplands, special closures, permits and cultural-resource protections can apply.
Official source — www.oregon.gov · Supporting official source — www.oregon.gov · Verified
Oregon
Current Oregon State Parks pages for Columbia River Gorge properties state that metal detecting is not allowed in Gorge State Parks. This park-system prohibition is stricter than the general statewide permit pathway and controls for Gorge properties.
Important exceptions: Only a later park-specific official rule that expressly authorizes detecting would override this classification. General special-use permitting for events is not treated as a detector permit.
Official source — stateparks.oregon.gov · Supporting official source — stateparks.oregon.gov · Verified
Osceola National Forest developed recreation sites
Current Forest Service metal-detecting policy says recreational detector use for modern lost items is generally allowed on National Forest System lands subject to archaeological/historic and resource protections, and commonly requires no permit in developed campgrounds, swimming beaches and picnic areas. This Florida completion pass grants an allowed decision only where the current Florida forest site identity clearly fits that developed category; primitive/hunt-camp/landing or sensitive geologic sites remain publishable confirmation-required decisions rather than forced permissions.
Important exceptions: No archaeological/historic-resource searching or disturbance; treasure-trove searches require separate authorization; posted closures and site-specific forest orders control. A recreation-page map point is never a legal detecting boundary. Primitive hunt camps/landings and sensitive interpretive sites require local site confirmation before travel.
Official source — www.fs.usda.gov · Supporting official source — www.fs.usda.gov · Verified
Overmountain Victory National Historic Trail in South Carolina
The Overmountain Victory National Historic Trail crosses multiple states and ownerships. NPS resource restrictions apply on NPS-administered land, while partner parcels can have different rules; exact segment ownership must be resolved before detector use or recovery.
Important exceptions: Do not infer NPS ownership from a national-trail designation or roadside route marker.
Official source — www.nps.gov · Supporting official source — www.nps.gov · Verified
Palm Beach County Parks
Palm Beach County Parks currently states that metal detecting is not allowed in county parks. Its FAQ quotes Sec. 21-20, including prior-written-approval requirements for excavation/removal and archaeological-resource restrictions, and expressly says detecting is not allowed on the park or beach itself.
Important exceptions: The FAQ says water surrounding County parks is outside Parks jurisdiction. That is not an affirmative grant of detector use or recovery rights; other state, federal, municipal, submerged-land, wildlife, cultural-resource and salvage rules may apply. Prior written director approval for excavation does not itself create a recreational metal-detecting exception.
Official source — discover.pbc.gov · Supporting official source — discover.pbc.gov · Verified
Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission properties/access areas
Fishing, boating and public access do not authorize metal detecting, digging or object removal. Confirm the exact PFBC property and current manager/rule requirements before use.
Important exceptions: Shoreline ownership and adjoining land management can differ from the access facility.
Official source — www.pa.gov · Verified
Pennsylvania Historical & Museum Commission properties
No detector, digging or artifact-recovery permission is inferred on PHMC historic properties. Exact property restrictions and written authorization must be confirmed.
Important exceptions: Archaeological/historic resources remain protected regardless of ordinary visitor access.
Official source — www.pa.gov · Verified
Pennsylvania major local park systems represented in the current data
Public park access is not detector or digging permission. Confirm the exact local ordinance, park rule, posted restriction, historic-resource constraint and manager requirement before detecting/recovery.
Important exceptions: This system-level cohort does not claim every Pennsylvania municipal or county park is represented.
Official source — www.phila.gov · Supporting official source — www.alleghenycounty.us · Verified
Pennsylvania NPS-listed mixed-ownership trails, rivers and programs
Mixed corridor/program listing does not establish one uniform detector rule. Identify the exact parcel/manager and apply that manager’s current detector, digging and cultural-resource restrictions.
Important exceptions: Direct NPS physical units are separately classified under the inherited federal protected-resource rule.
Official source — www.nps.gov · Verified
Pennsylvania State Forests
Current State Forest rules do not provide a blanket detector rule. Without written DCNR permission, digging/damaging/removing plants and removing rocks, shale, sand, clay, soil/mineral products are prohibited; historical/archeological resource disturbance/removal is separately protected.
Important exceptions: General forest access is not recovery permission. Exact detector scanning and any recovery method must be confirmed with the District Forester/designee.
Official source — www.pa.gov · Supporting official source — www.pa.gov · Verified
Pennsylvania State Game Lands and named special WMAs
The Game Commission states there is no prohibition per se on metal detecting on State Game Lands, but it is unlawful to dig and unlawful to remove historical/archeological artifacts or other objects except specifically lawful categories.
Important exceptions: The current 308-land cohort is represented at system level to avoid inventing a current individual-number roster. Hunting/fishing/recreation access does not expand recovery rights.
Official source — www.pa.gov · Supporting official source — pgcmaps.pa.gov · Verified
Pennsylvania State Parks — metal detecting
DCNR states reasonable detector use is permitted in many State Parks, but a detector user must receive prior approval from the specific on-site park manager. Sunrise-to-sunset hours, historical-resource closures, seasonal beach/swimming-area rules, narrow-pronged digging-tool restrictions and found-item reporting/removal conditions apply.
Important exceptions: Approval is site-specific and does not override closures, historic-resource protection, facility conflicts, fenced pool complexes, seasonal beach rules or prohibited digging tools.
Official source — www.pa.gov · Supporting official source — www.pa.gov · Verified
Pinellas County Parks
Current Pinellas County park rules list metal detection as prohibited except on beaches and require all dug holes to be filled. This exception is applied only when the individual record is independently verified as a county beach/beach-access property.
Important exceptions: Historic artifacts and natural materials may not be disturbed or removed. Sensitive habitat, preserves, posted closures, construction zones and property-specific rules may override the general beach exception. The county beach rule does not establish submerged-water jurisdiction or recovery rights.
Official source — pinellas.gov · Verified
Red Mountain Park
Alabama Administrative Code Rule 797-X-4-.04 prohibits using metal detectors and/or digging into the surface of Red Mountain Park except by permit.
Important exceptions: Permit is required before detector use/digging; natural, cultural, historical, archaeological, geological and mineralogical objects are separately protected.
Official source — admincode.legislature.state.al.us · Supporting official source — admincode.legislature.state.al.us · Verified
Rhode Island municipal parks/open-space systems
Municipal ownership and local codes control. RIDEM state-park rules are not projected onto city/town land.
Important exceptions: Historic-resource, digging, beach and special-event rules may vary by parcel.
Official source — www.ri.gov · Verified
Rhode Island NPS-listed mixed/affiliated corridors and partner properties
Apply 36 CFR §2.1 only to NPS-administered parcels; partner/state/local/private parcels retain their controlling rules.
Important exceptions: No blanket permission or blanket NPS prohibition is inferred across mixed ownership.
Official source — www.nps.gov · Supporting official source — www.ecfr.gov · Verified
Rhode Island RIDEM public reservations — metal detectors and archaeology
250-RICR-100-00-7 §7.8(C) restricts metal detectors and other location devices to designated areas during specified time periods. §7.8(A) separately requires written Director approval and a state historical-preservation permit for excavation, disturbance or field investigation.
Important exceptions: A park, beach, campground, trail, hunting area or public-access designation is not itself a detector designation. Current signs, times and RIDEM direction control.
Official source — rules.sos.ri.gov · Supporting official source — dem.ri.gov · Verified
Round Valley Recreation Area — sandy beach metal detecting
The current Round Valley Recreation Area page expressly permits metal detecting on the sandy beach and states that annual metal-detecting permits are free and available at the Park Office.
Important exceptions: The published permission is for the sandy beach, not the entire recreation area. Current closures, hours, resource protection, recovery method and permit conditions remain controlling.
Official source — dep.nj.gov · Supporting official source — www.nj.gov · Verified
Sandy Point State Park beach metal detecting
Sandy Point publishes a park-specific detector schedule for its beach/swimming areas: limited early-morning access in the Memorial Day–Labor Day season and broader park-hour access in the off-season.
Important exceptions: Current beach boundaries, closures, special events, resource protection and Park Manager instructions control. Artifact/relic hunting remains outside the modern-item exception.
Official source — dnr.maryland.gov · Supporting official source — dnr.maryland.gov · Verified
Sarasota County Parks and Facilities / mixed listed management
Current Sarasota County Park and Facility Rules prohibit digging/harmful disturbance and removal of park property, soil, natural water-bottom formations, sand, gravel, rocks, fossils, minerals, artifacts and other materials. This decisively blocks ordinary dug-target recovery where County rules govern. The rule is not broadened into a blanket detector-operation prohibition or permission, and mixed municipal/partner/operator management remains a scope check.
Important exceptions: The County rule contains limited exceptions including legal fishing; County-authorized animal control; legal hunting at specifically approved sites subject to conditions; sand sculpting; collection of shells, sharks' teeth and other natural materials that wash up on Beaches/Public Beach Parks subject to other law; authorized scientific/educational natural-object collection; and County land management/risk abatement. None is treated as blanket detector-operation or dug-target recovery permission. Exact facility management must still be confirmed, and municipal/partner/operator, water, preserve, cultural-resource, athletic and posted-site rules may be separately controlling or stricter.
Official source — www.sarasotacountyparks.com · Supporting official source — www.sarasotacountyparks.com · Verified
SCDNR-owned properties and Cultural Heritage Preserves
SCDNR Heritage Trust guidance states that metal detecting is not permitted on any SCDNR property and separately prohibits metal detecting and collection/damage of protected resources on Cultural Heritage Preserves.
Important exceptions: Do not extend this agency-property prohibition to cooperative/private/other-manager WMA parcels merely because they participate in the WMA program; exact ownership controls.
Official source — heritagetrust.dnr.sc.gov · Supporting official source — www.eregulations.com · Verified
Shepard State Park — City of Gautier operator exception
Shepard State Park is expressly excluded from 40 Miss. Code R. 6-1.2. No affirmative current City of Gautier detector/recovery permission is stored in the current data.
Important exceptions: Do not infer permission from the legal exemption. Confirm detector operation, digging/recovery and any protected-resource restrictions directly with the current operator before travel.
Official source — www.law.cornell.edu · Supporting official source — www.eregulations.com · Verified
South Carolina State Forest lands
South Carolina Forestry Commission management guidance states that general guidelines for all State Forest lands expressly forbid metal detecting, artifact collection, digging/damaging forest lands and certain resource collection without express consent of the Agency.
Important exceptions: A recreation permit is not by itself express authorization to metal detect or recover artifacts. Sensitive historical sites may have additional location-protection restrictions.
Official source — www.scfc.gov · Supporting official source — www.scfc.gov · Verified
South Carolina State Parks
South Carolina State Parks metal-detection policy requires Park Manager approval before each use and a signed permit specifying approved areas, dates/times and conditions. Historic/prehistoric artifacts may not be removed.
Important exceptions: Approval is site-, time- and condition-specific. Sensitive areas, utilities, erosion-prone/landscaped areas and protected cultural resources remain closed or restricted; modern personal property is handled under park policy.
Official source — southcarolinaparks.com · Supporting official source — southcarolinaparks.com · Verified
South Carolina WMA cooperative/leased properties not explicitly identified as SCDNR-owned
The WMA program combines private landowners, U.S. Forest Service, SCDNR and other managers. A WMA permit/access status does not establish permission to metal detect, dig or recover objects; exact landowner/manager and property rules must be verified.
Important exceptions: Where a separately verified manager-specific rule exists, that stronger rule controls. Native State Forest/National Forest identities are de-duplicated into their own cohorts in the current data.
Official source — www.eregulations.com · Supporting official source — www.dnr.sc.gov · Verified
South Dakota
ARSD 41:03:01:29 requires written authorization from a department representative before a metal detector may be used on lands owned, leased, managed or controlled by South Dakota Game, Fish and Parks. The current permit conditions limit digging tools and holes, require restoration, litter removal and inspection of finds by department staff.
Important exceptions: Authorization can impose site-specific conditions. Historical, archaeological or culturally significant finds may be retained by the department, and disturbance/removal of earth, rocks, minerals, natural formations or historic relics requires written permission under ARSD 41:03:01:05.
Official source — gfp.sd.gov · Supporting official source — sdlegislature.gov · Verified
South Dakota
South Dakota public-hunting programs include private lands leased for specified access. Hunting access does not transfer ownership or create permission to metal detect, dig or remove property.
Important exceptions: Follow the exact program terms and obtain landowner permission where required for any activity outside the granted access right.
Official source — gfp.sd.gov · Supporting official source — gfp.sd.gov · Verified
South Dakota
School and Public Lands are state trust lands managed for educational beneficiaries and may be leased. Appearance in the public hunting atlas does not itself authorize excavation, mineral recovery or removal of property.
Important exceptions: Exact tract leases, mineral ownership, local management agreements and current access postings control.
Official source — gfp.sd.gov · Supporting official source — sdlegislature.gov · Verified
South Dakota
South Dakota refuges and Waterfowl Production Areas are managed under the National Wildlife Refuge System. Hunting, fishing and wildlife-dependent recreation openings do not establish permission to search for or remove protected natural or cultural resources.
Important exceptions: Refuge and tract-specific rules, closures and compatible-use determinations control.
Official source — www.fws.gov · Supporting official source — www.fws.gov · Verified
South Dakota
Karl E. Mundt National Wildlife Refuge is closed to visitors to protect a critical bald-eagle winter roost. Recreational metal detecting is therefore unavailable on the refuge.
Important exceptions: Use the external overlook/interpretive facilities only as currently authorized.
Official source — www.fws.gov · Supporting official source — www.fws.gov · Verified
South Dakota
A national trail designation does not place every parcel under National Park Service ownership. Apply the rule of the exact landowner/manager at the proposed location.
Important exceptions: Direct NPS-owned lands remain subject to federal resource-protection and metal-detector restrictions.
Official source — www.nps.gov · Supporting official source — www.ecfr.gov · Verified
South Dakota
Forest Service lands can allow some lawful recreational prospecting or modern-item searching depending on land status and unit orders, but archaeological and historic resources remain protected and mining claims/special designations can restrict activity.
Important exceptions: Confirm current forest/grassland orders, mining-claim status, developed-site restrictions and exact resource rules before digging.
Official source — www.fs.usda.gov · Supporting official source — www.fs.usda.gov · Verified
South Dakota
BLM states that metal detectors may be used on public lands for lawful purposes and that hand-tool prospecting can be allowed with minor surface disturbance. Cultural materials, historic artifacts and archaeological sites may not be removed or disturbed, and mining claims, developed sites or special restrictions can change what is allowed.
Important exceptions: Confirm exact BLM parcel, public access, mining claims and current closures with the South Dakota Field Office.
Official source — www.blm.gov · Supporting official source — www.blm.gov · Verified
South Dakota
South Dakota Missouri River dam projects include federal, state, Tribal, county and other partner-operated recreation areas. General recreation access does not establish detector recovery permission; the exact project and managing partner must be confirmed.
Important exceptions: Developed areas and cultural resources can be restricted; partner-operated parks may use South Dakota GFP rules.
Official source — www.nwo.usace.army.mil · Supporting official source — www.nwo.usace.army.mil · Verified
South Dakota
South Dakota local parks do not share one statewide metal-detector rule. Confirm the current city/county ordinance and exact site restrictions before detecting or digging.
Important exceptions: Historic sites, cemeteries, landscaped areas, athletic fields and special-use properties can have stricter rules.
Official source — www.siouxfalls.gov · Supporting official source — www.rcgov.org · Verified
St. Johns County Parks & Recreation
Park Ordinance 2005-114 §7(b) prohibits digging, moving/removing beach sand (whether submerged or not), soil, rocks, stones, plants, wood or other materials, and excavation by tool/equipment/other means on governed park property except with prior written approval of the Parks and Recreation Director. §9(a) separately restricts digging/disturbing grass areas without prior written approval. The ordinance does not expressly state a universal ban or permission for ordinary recreational detector operation, so detector use remains a separate question and no permission is inferred.
Important exceptions: Section 2 makes the Beach Code controlling where specifically different and gives conflicting park-specific rules precedence. Archaeologically sensitive areas receive additional §7(c) protection. Partner/operator boundaries, separately governed City/State/Federal property, conservation areas, athletic fields, shoreline construction, posted closures and current site rules require separate checks. Public access, rentals, fishing, boating, geocaching or beach-driving privileges are not detector authorization.
Official source — www.sjcfl.us · Supporting official source — www.sjcfl.us · Verified
Steve Powell Wildlife Management Area (Swan Island and Little Swan Island)
MDIFW Swan Island visitor rules expressly state that metal detectors are not allowed to be used on Swan Island or Little Swan Island.
Important exceptions: None for ordinary recreational metal detecting.
Official source — www11.maine.gov · Supporting official source — www.maine.gov · Verified
Suffolk County Parks metal detecting
Suffolk County authorizes detector use with a valid permit only at six named parks and imposes beach-zone, campground, picnic, lifeguard, upland, historic and environmental restrictions.
Important exceptions: Closures can change with beach, maintenance and natural-resource conditions.
Official source — www.suffolkcountyny.gov · Supporting official source — suffolkcountyny.gov · Verified
Tampa Bay National Wildlife Refuges — Egmont Key detector prohibition
FWS Tampa Bay refuge guidance expressly lists metal detectors as prohibited on Egmont Key.
Important exceptions: Egmont Key has public-use areas and wildlife sanctuaries/closed areas. Public access does not create detector permission.
Official source — www.fws.gov · Verified
Tampa Bay National Wildlife Refuges — Passage Key and Pinellas public closure
Passage Key and Pinellas NWR are closed to public use, so recreational metal detecting is not an authorized public activity. No search-target coordinates are published.
Important exceptions: Only official/authorized activities may enter closed refuge areas. Closure status should be rechecked before any visit.
Official source — www.fws.gov · Verified
Tennessee municipal park systems
A park being public/open is not treated as detector permission. Verify the current municipal code, park rules, site manager restrictions, event/field restrictions, digging limits and cultural-resource protections before detecting.
Important exceptions: Historic, burial, archaeological and culturally sensitive locations require stricter treatment and may be excluded or locator-withheld.
Official source — www.nashville.gov · Verified
Tennessee State Archaeological Areas
Tennessee requires a State Archaeological Permit for archaeological work on state-owned/managed/controlled lands and expressly includes metal detecting. These sensitive archaeological identities are locator-withheld.
Important exceptions: No generic map search or coordinate is published for these sensitive-site records.
Official source — www.tn.gov · Verified
Tennessee State Parks and state natural areas
Rule 0400-02-02-.18(6) prohibits mineral or metal detecting devices capable of locating underground or underwater geological, archaeological or historical objects/materials on Tennessee State Parks property.
Important exceptions: Narrow exceptions cover navigation/safe-operation equipment, legitimate archaeological research under a State Archaeologist permit signed by the Assistant Commissioner, and a limited lost-item search under Park Manager supervision.
Official source — publications.tnsosfiles.com · Supporting official source — www.tn.gov · Verified
Tennessee state-owned, managed or controlled lands
Tennessee states that archaeological work on state-owned, managed or controlled lands requires a State Archaeological Permit and expressly includes metal detecting among covered work. The source does not create a blanket recreational detector authorization on state lands.
Important exceptions: An archaeological permit is a professional research authorization, not a general recreational detecting pass; the land manager must also be contacted.
Official source — www.tn.gov · Verified
Texas
31 TAC §59.134(i), as amended/adopted in 2026, makes it an offense to operate or use a metal detector in a state park except as authorized by the park superintendent or designee.
Important exceptions: Authorization is site-specific. Historic, archaeological, natural-resource, closed or otherwise protected zones may remain unavailable even if a lost-item or other limited authorization is considered.
Official source — tpwd.texas.gov · Supporting official source — tpwd.texas.gov · Verified
Texas
TPWD public-hunting rules prohibit disturbing or removing plants, wood, rocks, gravel, sand, soil, shell, artifacts or other objects from public hunting lands without proper authorization. Public hunting or Limited Public Use access is not detector/recovery permission.
Important exceptions: Property ownership and special unit rules can be stricter; federal overlays, restricted zones and scheduled-access WMAs require the governing land manager’s rules as well.
Official source — tpwd.texas.gov · Supporting official source — tpwd.texas.gov · Verified
Texas
USACE allows detector use only within the limits of 36 CFR Part 327 and project-specific restrictions; archaeological/historic resources are protected and project managers can restrict detector use to designated zones.
Important exceptions: Belton Lake expressly restricts detecting to the swim beaches at Temple’s Lake and Westcliff Parks. Pat Mayse Lake USACE/TPWD-managed areas prohibit metal detecting because of former Camp Maxey munitions/resource risks.
Official source — www.swf.usace.army.mil · Supporting official source — www.swf.usace.army.mil · Verified
Texas
USACE safety guidance for former Camp Maxey states: do not engage in metal detecting in any Pat Mayse Lake area managed by USACE or Texas Parks and Wildlife.
Important exceptions: No recreational detector exception is inferred; suspected ordnance must not be disturbed.
Official source — www.swf.usace.army.mil · Supporting official source — www.swt.usace.army.mil · Verified
Texas
National Forest recreational access does not authorize disturbance or removal of archaeological/historic resources. Detector use must comply with federal cultural-resource law, closure orders and site-specific Forest Service restrictions.
Important exceptions: TPWD public-hunting overlays exist on several Forest Service units; those TPWD rules do not replace Forest Service ownership/resource-protection requirements.
Official source — www.fs.usda.gov · Supporting official source — www.fs.usda.gov · Verified
Texas
NPS program identity does not make every trail/river segment federally owned. Determine the exact parcel/segment manager before applying detector or recovery rules.
Important exceptions: Direct NPS-administered units remain governed by the inherited NPS resource-protection rule.
Official source — www.nps.gov · Supporting official source — www.nps.gov · Verified
Texas
Texas state-park rules do not govern municipal parks or beaches. Detecting legality depends on local ordinances, property rules, excavation/resource-removal restrictions and any beach-specific management conditions.
Important exceptions: Historic sites, cemeteries, protected dunes, archaeological resources and leased/federal parcels can be separately restricted.
Official source — statutes.capitol.texas.gov · Supporting official source — tpwd.texas.gov · Verified
Tuscaloosa County Park & Recreation Authority parks
PARA publishes park access, amenities and operating information, but the reviewed current directory does not establish blanket recreational metal-detecting or digging permission.
Important exceptions: Exact park, historic/resource sensitivity, closures, digging and recovery rules must be confirmed before detector use.
Official source — www.tcpara.org · Supporting official source — www.tcpara.org · Verified
TVA Public Lands in Alabama
TVA current public-land rules expressly prohibit use of metal detectors.
Important exceptions: Private land near a TVA reservoir is not automatically TVA public land; exact ownership still matters. Archaeological-resource disturbance/removal is independently protected.
Official source — www.tva.com · Supporting official source — www.tva.com · Verified
TVA-owned public lands
TVA Rules for Use of TVA Public Lands expressly prohibit metal detectors and prohibit excavation/removal/damage and archaeological impacts.
Important exceptions: The prohibition is tied to TVA public land; project/reservoir identity is not a claim that all shoreline is TVA property.
Official source — www.tva.com · Supporting official source — www.tva.com · Verified
TWRA Wildlife Management Areas, refuges and public hunting/recreation lands
TWRA publishes WMA access and activity rules, but ordinary access, hunting, fishing, or license status is not treated by this database as permission to metal detect, dig, or remove objects.
Important exceptions: Site-specific prohibitions, closures, military controls, cultural-resource protections and landowner overlays supersede this confirmation layer.
Official source — www.tn.gov · Verified
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Nashville District recreation projects
The Nashville District publishes named approved locations for metal detecting at its projects. This database stores the named areas but requires current project-office/site confirmation and does not infer detector-use polygons.
Important exceptions: Approval is location-specific; archaeological/historic resources, closures, digging methods and posted project rules remain controlling.
Official source — www.lrd.usace.army.mil · Verified
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers recreation lands — 36 CFR §327.14
36 CFR §327.14 permits metal detectors on designated beaches or other previously disturbed lands where specifically authorized and not otherwise prohibited. The exact open area is project-specific and must not be inferred from a shoreline, beach name or public map pin.
Important exceptions: District/project managers may prohibit use. Archaeological, historic and other protected resources may not be disturbed or removed. Where a project publishes an exact detector policy, that project-specific policy controls.
Official source — www.ecfr.gov · Supporting official source — www.sam.usace.army.mil · Verified
U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service National Wildlife Refuge System — 50 CFR Part 27 search/resource restrictions
Federal Refuge System rules provide an A-grade negative decision for antiquity, buried-treasure/treasure-trove, specified mineral-object and prospecting searches and for unauthorized property disturbance/removal. They do not expressly answer every ordinary modern lost-item detector-use scenario. current decision therefore publishes the resolved restrictions while preserving the unresolved narrower detector-use dimension.
Important exceptions: Refuge-specific rules, closures, special-use permits and compatibility determinations may be stricter, including explicit detector prohibitions. Authorized activities may exist under applicable federal regulations. No permission is inferred from public access, beaches, waterways or absence of a refuge-specific detector sentence.
Official source — www.ecfr.gov · Supporting official source — www.fws.gov · Verified
USACE Little Rock District Arkansas recreation projects
The Little Rock District publishes the current project roster. Blue Mountain Lake has an explicit metal-detector permit form, proving project-specific conditions exist; the same permit rule is not generalized to every district project without a current project-specific source.
Important exceptions: Blue Mountain is marked authorization-required from its explicit permit form. Other projects remain project/site confirmation required until a current detector policy is verified.
Official source — www.swl.usace.army.mil · Supporting official source — www.swl.usace.army.mil · Verified
USACE New Orleans District — Louisiana recreation projects
USACE recreation property is governed by 36 CFR 327.14(d): metal detectors may be used only in designated beaches or previously disturbed lands unless prohibited by the District Commander; resource-removal rules still apply. No project-specific qualifying footprint is inferred.
Important exceptions: Confirm current posted/project restrictions and the exact qualifying footprint before use. Historic/archaeological recovery remains protected.
Official source — www.mvn.usace.army.mil · Supporting official source — www.ecfr.gov · Verified
USACE Vicksburg District — Louisiana recreation properties
The Vicksburg District states a permit is required to use a metal detector at a District recreation site/property and that the permit is not valid until signed by a resources manager.
Important exceptions: A permit does not create permission outside qualifying/designated areas or override 36 CFR resource-protection restrictions. No zone polygon is inferred in this database.
Official source — www.mvk.usace.army.mil · Supporting official source — www.ecfr.gov · Verified
USACE Vicksburg District Arkansas recreation projects
The Vicksburg District recreation-permit page expressly states that a permit is required to use a metal detector and lists DeGray Lake, Lake Greeson and Lake Ouachita under Arkansas. A permit is not valid until signed by a resources manager.
Important exceptions: Permit conditions and eligible areas are project-specific; no beach/disturbed-area polygon is inferred or stored.
Official source — www.mvk.usace.army.mil · Verified
USACE Vicksburg District Mississippi recreation projects
The Vicksburg District requires a metal-detector permit. The Mississippi permit identifies Arkabutla, Sardis, Enid and Grenada Lakes and limits detecting to approved beaches or other previously disturbed areas without expected archaeological, historical or paleontological resources.
Important exceptions: Application is not approval. The form requires advance submission, prohibits detecting around occupied campsites, controls recovery/property disposition and requires the signed permit. No permission polygon is inferred.
Official source — www.mvk.usace.army.mil · Supporting official source — www.mvk.usace.army.mil · Verified
Utah
Current Utah State Parks operational guidance states that metal detecting is permitted only with an approved Special Use Permit. Historical/archaeological, developed/facility and environmentally sensitive zones are excluded; holes must be refilled and finds are handled under park lost-property/cultural-resource rules.
Important exceptions: A permit may be denied or limited by park management. Historic or cultural objects may not be kept, and a permit does not override state cultural-resource law.
Official source — stateparks.utah.gov · Supporting official source — stateparks.utah.gov · Verified
Utah
DWR states WMAs are wildlife-focused lands, not general multi-use public lands; some are closed or seasonally limited and permitted recreation varies by property. Since July 1, 2026, adults accessing WMAs in Davis, Salt Lake, Utah and Weber counties also need a qualifying license or free digital access permit. None of those access credentials establishes metal-detecting, excavation or object-recovery permission.
Important exceptions: Check the current WMA map, entrance postings, habitat plan, seasonal closures, ownership and intended activity before detector use or recovery. The access requirement expands to more counties in 2027 and statewide in 2028.
Official source — wildlife.utah.gov · Supporting official source — wildlife.utah.gov · Verified
Utah
DWR access programs can open private land for specified hunting/fishing or wildlife purposes, but they do not transfer ownership or create general metal-detecting/recovery rights.
Important exceptions: Confirm the exact property agreement, permitted activity, owner restrictions and any cultural/resource rules before detector use.
Official source — wildlife.utah.gov · Supporting official source — wildlife.utah.gov · Verified
Utah
BLM detector use can be lawful for appropriate prospecting/modern-object searching on suitable public land with only minor disturbance, but developed sites, active claims, special designations and cultural/historic resources can restrict or prohibit the activity. National Conservation Lands require designation-specific confirmation.
Important exceptions: Verify the exact BLM parcel, active mining claims, wilderness/WSA/monument/NCA rules, closure orders and intended target. Archaeological and historic resources may not be disturbed or collected.
Official source — www.blm.gov · Supporting official source — www.blm.gov · Verified
Utah
An NPS trail identity does not make the whole Utah corridor NPS-owned. Apply the NPS detector prohibition on NPS-administered parcels and the actual owner/manager rule elsewhere.
Important exceptions: Historic and archaeological resources remain protected regardless of corridor ownership.
Official source — www.nps.gov · Supporting official source — www.nps.gov · Verified
Utah
National Forest access is not blanket detector or digging permission. Forest Orders, developed recreation restrictions, wilderness, archaeological/historic resources, mining claims and the intended target control detector use and recovery.
Important exceptions: Confirm the ranger district/site and current Forest Orders; do not disturb archaeological or historic resources.
Official source — www.fs.usda.gov · Supporting official source — www.fs.usda.gov · Verified
Utah
Utah Trust Lands expressly states that metal detecting is not allowed because of the culturally and historically sensitive nature of Trust Lands. It also prohibits searching for treasure, artifacts or other natural/person-made items.
Important exceptions: Trust Lands are not public lands. Other recreation permissions or rockhounding permits do not authorize metal detecting.
Official source — trustlands.utah.gov · Supporting official source — trustlands.utah.gov · Verified
Vermont Department of Forests, Parks and Recreation lands / State Parks
Visitor Rule 6 permits metal detectors only in areas designated by the Commissioner, requires reporting to authorized personnel, limits probing to a small hand tool and 3 inches, requires restoration, and bars use in obvious historic-significance areas.
Important exceptions: A park listing, beach, campground or public-access status does not establish a detector zone.
Official source — www.vtstateparks.com · Supporting official source — www.vtstateparks.com · Verified
Vermont Fish & Wildlife lands
ANR Uses of State Lands policy states that metal detecting is not an allowed use of Fish and Wildlife lands.
Important exceptions: Official/research work may have separate legal authority; hunting/fishing access is not a detector exception.
Official source — fpr.vermont.gov · Supporting official source — www.vtfishandwildlife.com · Verified
Vermont mixed-ownership National Scenic Trail corridors
Trail administration does not establish parcel ownership. NPS metal-detector restrictions apply on NPS-administered lands; other parcels follow their controlling owner/manager rules.
Important exceptions: No blanket trail-corridor permission or prohibition is projected across mixed ownership.
Official source — www.nps.gov · Supporting official source — www.ecfr.gov · Verified
Vermont municipal parks/open-space systems
Municipal ownership, ordinances, easements, posted rules and parcel-manager directions control; State Park permissions are not inherited.
Important exceptions: Rules vary by parcel and may independently restrict digging/removal/historic resources.
Official source — www.vermont.gov · Verified
Vermont State Forests
ANR policy identifies ordinary detector use as permitted only in developed or previously disturbed State Park areas; no blanket State Forest permission is projected.
Important exceptions: Any future explicit FPR designated area would control for that exact area.
Official source — fpr.vermont.gov · Supporting official source — www.vtstateparks.com · Verified
Vermont State-owned/controlled sites and designated archaeological landmarks
22 V.S.A. §§ 762-764 reserve field investigation on State sites and establish a permit mechanism; State-derived objects remain State property.
Important exceptions: An independently lawful non-archaeological activity still remains subject to the land-manager rule.
Official source — legislature.vermont.gov · Supporting official source — legislature.vermont.gov · Verified
Virginia DWR Wildlife Management Areas and DWR property
Virginia DWR WMA rules prohibit removal of minerals, artifacts or other property and expressly state that metal detecting/artifact hunting is prohibited.
Important exceptions: Hunting, fishing, hiking or other authorized access does not create detector permission.
Official source — dwr.virginia.gov · Supporting official source — dwr.virginia.gov · Verified
Virginia Natural Area Preserves
Virginia DCR manages the Natural Area Preserve System to protect rare natural communities and species. The current public-access preserve guide covers 24 visitor-access preserves. The State Parks detector exception is limited to six named designated man-made beaches and does not create a recreational detector/recovery pathway for Natural Area Preserves.
Important exceptions: Sensitive-site locators are withheld. Public access for hiking, paddling, photography or wildlife viewing is not detector, digging or collection permission.
Official source — www.dcr.virginia.gov · Supporting official source — www.dcr.virginia.gov · Verified
Virginia State Forests
Virginia DOF manages 26 State Forests and states that permissible uses vary by individual forest. No current blanket recreational metal-detector authorization was verified, so exact forest and intended recovery activity require manager confirmation.
Important exceptions: A State Forest Use Permit for hunting/fishing/biking/horseback riding is not a metal-detector permit. Closed or no-direct-access forests must be treated according to current access status.
Official source — www.dof.virginia.gov · Supporting official source — www.dof.virginia.gov · Verified
Virginia State Forests — no public access
Where DOF identifies a State Forest as not open to the public, recreational detector access is unavailable unless the agency provides specific authorization.
Important exceptions: Operational access status can change; reverify before publication refresh.
Official source — www.dof.virginia.gov · Verified
Virginia State Parks — designated man-made beach exception
Virginia State Parks permit metal detectors only on designated man-made beaches and only with a DCR special use permit from the park manager. The statewide rule names Bear Creek Lake, Douthat, Fairy Stone, Holliday Lake, Hungry Mother and Twin Lakes as the small-lake parks relevant to this exception.
Important exceptions: The permit does not create permission outside the designated man-made beach. Historic/archaeological resources, closures, digging limits and current manager conditions remain controlling.
Official source — www.dcr.virginia.gov · Supporting official source — www.dhr.virginia.gov · Verified
Virginia State Parks — outside designated exception
The DCR rule does not provide general park-wide detecting. Outside a designated man-made beach at one of the named exception parks, recreational detector use is not permitted under the published State Parks rule.
Important exceptions: Do not apply this rule automatically to Breaks Interstate Park, which is not managed as an ordinary DCR Virginia State Park.
Official source — www.dcr.virginia.gov · Supporting official source — www.dhr.virginia.gov · Verified
Volusia County Parks
Official park rules state that metal detecting is not allowed in any Volusia County park.
Important exceptions: Municipal parks/beaches are separate jurisdictions and require separate research.
Official source — www.volusia.org · Verified
Washington
Metal detecting is permitted only in specified portions of State Parks that are on the current approved list. Users must complete the State Parks registration process and carry a copy while detecting.
Important exceptions: Daylight/open hours only; approved campgrounds only as posted; small tools and six-inch maximum holes; historical or archaeological finds must remain undisturbed and be reported.
Official source — parks.wa.gov · Supporting official source — app.leg.wa.gov · Verified
Washington
Washington State Parks states that if detecting information is not posted for a park, that park does not permit metal detecting.
Important exceptions: Do not infer permission from ordinary recreation access or from a nearby approved property.
Official source — parks.wa.gov · Supporting official source — app.leg.wa.gov · Verified
Washington
The Seashore Conservation Area is included in the current State Parks detecting registration list. Exact local boundaries, closures and protected resources still control.
Important exceptions: No historical or archaeological removal; observe posted closures, tideland ownership and protected-resource restrictions.
Official source — parks.wa.gov · Supporting official source — app.leg.wa.gov · Verified
Washington
WDFW public-use rules prohibit removal of petrified wood, minerals, fossils, wood products or artifacts from department lands unless authorized by a Director-issued permit.
Important exceptions: Hunting, fishing, parking or ordinary public access does not authorize excavation or detector recovery; seasonal and site closures also apply.
Official source — wdfw.wa.gov · Supporting official source — wdfw.wa.gov · Verified
Washington
DNR expressly permits metal detecting on DNR-managed land when archaeological, Tribal and historic artifacts are not impacted.
Important exceptions: No archaeological/historic artifact removal; specified small digging tools; holes no deeper than six inches and immediately restored; exact closures and land status control.
Official source — dnr.wa.gov · Supporting official source — dnr.wa.gov · Verified
Washington
Natural areas are managed primarily to protect ecosystems and sensitive resources, so the ordinary DNR metal-detecting allowance is not treated as blanket permission in these conservation systems.
Important exceptions: Check the exact natural-area rules, posted closures and manager direction before any soil-disturbing activity.
Official source — dnr.wa.gov · Supporting official source — dnr.wa.gov · Verified
Washington
Recreational detector use on suitable BLM public land must remain consistent with land status, existing rights, cultural-resource law and special-area rules.
Important exceptions: National monuments, wilderness, WSAs, archaeological/historic resources, mining claims and closed/special areas require stricter treatment.
Official source — www.blm.gov · Supporting official source — www.blm.gov · Verified
Washington
Washington BLM National Conservation Lands are protected designations and are not treated as ordinary unrestricted detector-recovery areas.
Important exceptions: San Juan Islands National Monument, Juniper Dunes Wilderness and Chopaka Mountain WSA require exact-site confirmation and cultural-resource protection.
Official source — www.blm.gov · Supporting official source — www.blm.gov · Verified
Washington
NPS-associated trails and reserves can cross non-NPS parcels; NPS restrictions apply to NPS-administered land, while other parcels follow their controlling owner.
Important exceptions: Do not treat an entire trail corridor, reserve, or multi-state collection of sites as federally owned.
Official source — www.nps.gov · Supporting official source — www.nps.gov · Verified
Washington
National Wildlife Refuge public access is activity- and zone-specific. Ordinary visitation, hunting or fishing access is not detector-recovery permission.
Important exceptions: Closed areas, wildlife buffers, archaeological resources and refuge-specific special-use rules control.
Official source — www.fws.gov · Supporting official source — www.fws.gov · Verified
Washington
The refuge is closed to public access; detector use is not a permitted visitor activity.
Important exceptions: Observe offshore buffers and other closure boundaries where specified; do not map sensitive resource locations.
Official source — www.fws.gov · Supporting official source — www.fws.gov · Verified
Washington
Forest Service guidance recognizes recreational metal detecting for modern incidental items in suitable areas but prohibits detecting for archaeological/historic resources and protects such sites from disturbance.
Important exceptions: Special-use areas, wilderness, monuments, mining claims, resource closures and surface-disturbance rules can impose additional restrictions.
Official source — www.fs.usda.gov · Supporting official source — www.fs.usda.gov · Verified
Washington
USACE recreation property can contain project-specific detecting areas and restrictions; project access does not create blanket digging or recovery permission.
Important exceptions: Check the exact project, recreation-area posting, cultural-resource rules and current closures before detecting.
Official source — www.nws.usace.army.mil · Supporting official source — www.nww.usace.army.mil · Verified
Washington
Reclamation project identity does not by itself establish detector-recovery permission because recreation lands may be managed by multiple federal, state, local or concession partners.
Important exceptions: Confirm the exact parcel, operating partner, current closure and resource-protection rules before detecting.
Official source — www.usbr.gov · Supporting official source — www.usbr.gov · Verified
Waukesha County, Wisconsin
Waukesha County expressly requires a metal detection permit for metal detecting in any Waukesha County Park.
Important exceptions: Permit conditions and park/resource-specific restrictions remain controlling.
Official source — www.waukeshacounty.gov · Verified
Wayne County, Michigan
Wayne County Parks identifies the Nankin Mills Interpretive Center as the office for metal detector permits. Obtain current permit terms and park/zone restrictions before detecting.
Important exceptions: County permit conditions, park-specific restrictions and protected-resource laws remain controlling.
Official source — www.waynecountymi.gov · Supporting official source — www.waynecountymi.gov · Verified
Wayne National Forest
Forest Service guidance distinguishes narrow recreational searching for recent lost objects from archaeological/historic-resource searching or excavation, which is restricted and may require authorization.
Important exceptions: Check current forest orders, archaeological protections and exact parcel status before recovery.
Official source — www.fs.usda.gov · Supporting official source — www.fs.usda.gov · Verified
West Point Lake designated metal-detector areas
West Point Lake expressly allows metal detectors only in designated open areas; all other project public property remains closed under the project policy.
Important exceptions: Use only the named ball field/playground/beach subzone. Beach detecting is limited by the swim-line rule where specified. Campground areas are for registered campers/guests during open season. Small hand tools and restoration requirements apply; protected/historic finds must be reported.
Official source — www.sam.usace.army.mil · Supporting official source — www.sam.usace.army.mil · Verified
West Virginia municipal and regional parks
The current official local directories establish park identity and public recreation access, but no systemwide detector/recovery authorization was verified. West Virginia archaeological/historic-resource law and local ground-disturbance/property rules remain controlling.
Important exceptions: Obtain current manager confirmation for detector use and recovery, especially at memorial, heritage, historic, riverfront and natural-resource sites.
Official source — code.wvlegislature.gov · Supporting official source — charlestonwv.gov · Verified
West Virginia National Forest System lands
Forest Service policy allows metal-detector use on NFS lands for lawful purposes in areas that do not contain, and would not reasonably be expected to contain, archaeological or historic resources. Archaeological/historic artifact searching is restricted and may require a research permit.
Important exceptions: Local Forest Orders, wilderness/special-area rules, land status, excavation impacts and ARPA/NHPA protections remain controlling. Verify the exact unit before travel.
Official source — www.fs.usda.gov · Supporting official source — www.fs.usda.gov · Verified
West Virginia NPS-administered national trails
NPS lists these trails in West Virginia, but route segments may cross NPS, state, local and private lands. NPS resource restrictions apply on NPS-administered land; other segments require the actual landowner rule.
Important exceptions: Do not infer NPS ownership or detector permission/restriction for an entire trail from the trail designation alone.
Official source — www.nps.gov · Supporting official source — www.ecfr.gov · Verified
West Virginia public and private archaeological/historic resources
West Virginia Code §29-1-8a prohibits excavation, removal, destruction or disturbance of protected archaeological/historic/grave resources without a valid permit from the Director of Historic Preservation and requires disturbance to stop when human remains or grave artifacts are discovered.
Important exceptions: This protection does not create a blanket detector ban on every parcel; ordinary modern lost-item detecting still requires the landowner/manager to authorize detector use and recovery.
Official source — code.wvlegislature.gov · Supporting official source — wvculture.org · Verified
West Virginia State Parks and State Forests
West Virginia State Park rules protect buildings, equipment, vegetation, rocks, minerals and geological features from damage/removal except where a permit or other rule authorizes the activity. No current blanket recreational metal-detector permission was verified for the system.
Important exceptions: Confirm detector use, probing/digging, target recovery and any permit with the exact park/forest manager. Historic, battlefield, cemetery and archaeological contexts require additional protection.
Official source — wvdnr.gov · Supporting official source — wvstateparks.com · Verified
West Virginia Wildlife Management Areas
WVDNR WMA rules make it unlawful to remove man-made or natural objects from a WMA, including historical or archaeological artifacts, rocks, minerals and other listed resources. A detector does not create target-recovery authority.
Important exceptions: A newer written site-specific authorization from WVDNR would control, but ordinary recreation/hunting access is not recovery permission.
Official source — wvdnr.gov · Verified
White Mountain National Forest — New Hampshire
Forest Service policy generally allows low-impact recreational detector use in suitable National Forest areas, while archaeological/historic-resource law, closures, wilderness restrictions, claims and disturbance thresholds remain controlling.
Important exceptions: Treasure-trove searches and archaeological/historical searching use different authorization pathways. Always check current district/forest orders.
Official source — www.fs.usda.gov · Supporting official source — www.fs.usda.gov · Verified
White Mountain National Forest lands in Maine
Forest Service guidance allows certain recreational metal detecting for recent lost objects where not otherwise prohibited, while archaeological/historic resources, protected sites and activities amounting to archaeological excavation remain restricted.
Important exceptions: Local orders, wilderness/resource protections and exact land status control.
Official source — www.fs.usda.gov · Supporting official source — www.fs.usda.gov · Verified
Wisconsin
Wisconsin DNR allows metal detectors on DNR lands or waters only to locate one or more specific lost personal items under a special permit issued by the property office. The permit identifies the item, a limited search area and a specific time between May 1 and October 15.
Important exceptions: Recorded archaeological sites require DNR archaeologist review/approval; detecting is generally not permitted in reported burial areas. Archaeological materials 50 years old and older may not be removed. Recovered items must be presented to the property office.
Official source — dnr.wisconsin.gov · Supporting official source — dnr.wisconsin.gov · Verified
Wisconsin
Traditional wildlife-area public access does not authorize recreational treasure hunting. The statewide DNR metal detector rule limits detector use on DNR lands to specific lost personal-item recovery under a signed property permit.
Important exceptions: Wildlife/habitat restrictions, archaeological sites, burial areas, seasonal closures and property-specific rules remain controlling.
Official source — dnr.wisconsin.gov · Supporting official source — dnr.wisconsin.gov · Verified
Wisconsin
The DNR detector permit rule applies across DNR-managed properties. System records prevent other DNR land categories from being incorrectly interpreted as recreational detector-open.
Important exceptions: State Natural Areas and cultural-resource sites may carry stricter resource protections; exact property confirmation is required.
Official source — dnr.wisconsin.gov · Supporting official source — dnr.wisconsin.gov · Verified
Wyoming
Wyoming park rules prohibit use of a mineral or metal detecting device at a state park or recreation area without written permission of the superintendent. Park resources, soil, rocks, minerals, artifacts, relics and historic or prehistoric features are separately protected from unauthorized disturbance or removal.
Important exceptions: Written superintendent permission is the rule-based pathway for State Parks and the State Recreation Area; it does not authorize protected-resource recovery outside the written terms.
Official source — wyoparks.wyo.gov · Supporting official source — www.law.cornell.edu · Verified
Wyoming
Wyoming park rules prohibit mineral or metal detecting devices at state historic or archaeological sites except for official use. Protected artifacts, relics and historic or prehistoric features may not be disturbed or removed.
Important exceptions: Official agency use is not recreational permission. Museum and historic-site visitor access does not create a recovery pathway.
Official source — wyoparks.wyo.gov · Supporting official source — www.law.cornell.edu · Verified
Wyoming
WGFD administers WHMAs for wildlife habitat and public recreation subject to Chapter 23, seasonal closures and area-specific rules. Hunting, fishing, camping or wildlife-viewing access does not by itself establish metal-detecting, digging or object-recovery permission.
Important exceptions: Human-presence closures, travel limits and other site-specific restrictions can apply. Confirm the current WHMA page and Chapter 23 before any detecting or recovery activity.
Official source — wgfd.wyo.gov · Supporting official source — wgfd.wyo.gov · Verified
Wyoming
Public Access Areas are Commission-owned lands or permanent/long-term easements managed for specified recreational access. Each PAA has its own posted rules. Fishing or hunting access does not establish permission for metal detecting, excavation or recovery.
Important exceptions: Easement terms and the underlying owner may control activities beyond the posted hunting/fishing access purpose.
Official source — wgfd.wyo.gov · Supporting official source — wgfd.wyo.gov · Verified
Wyoming
Access Yes enrollment provides only the specific hunting or fishing access described for the property. Walk-In Areas are private property and only the landowner may allow other activities; HMAs likewise have property-specific permission and ranch rules.
Important exceptions: Public land inside an HMA/WIA can have different rules if legally accessed without crossing enrolled property. Always identify the actual parcel owner.
Official source — wgfd.wyo.gov · Supporting official source — wgfd.wyo.gov · Verified
Wyoming
BLM public access does not override mining claims, closures, special designations or cultural-resource protections. Metal detecting for lawful modern targets/prospecting may be possible on suitable BLM land where the activity is otherwise lawful and causes only permissible disturbance, but historic and archaeological resources are protected.
Important exceptions: Wilderness Study Areas, national trails, developed sites, active claims, cultural sites and special closures require exact current review. No protected artifact may be targeted or removed.
Official source — www.blm.gov · Supporting official source — www.blm.gov · Verified
Wyoming
A national-trail identity does not make every Wyoming segment NPS-administered. Apply federal NPS detector restrictions on NPS-administered parcels and the actual owner/manager rule elsewhere.
Important exceptions: Trail association, route history or signage is not evidence of parcel ownership or detecting permission.
Official source — www.nps.gov · Supporting official source — www.nps.gov · Verified
Wyoming
National Forest access is not blanket detector or excavation permission. Historic and archaeological resources, wilderness, developed sites, active claims, Forest Orders and other land-status restrictions can prohibit or limit detecting and recovery.
Important exceptions: Confirm the exact National Forest/Grassland unit, current Forest Orders, claim status and intended target before use.
Official source — www.fs.usda.gov · Supporting official source — www.fs.usda.gov · Verified
Wyoming
Reclamation owns or operates major Wyoming water projects, while recreation is often managed by a county, state agency, BLM or another partner. Reservoir access does not establish detector, excavation or recovery permission.
Important exceptions: Determine the exact recreation parcel and operating manager; State Park, refuge, county, BLM or other rules may control specific shorelines and facilities.
Official source — www.usbr.gov · Supporting official source — www.usbr.gov · Verified
Wyoming
Wyoming allows public hunting, fishing and general recreation on legally accessible State Trust Lands subject to Chapter 13 restrictions. Activities outside that scope require a temporary use permit or special use lease, and damaging activities are prohibited.
Important exceptions: Cultivated cropland, inaccessible parcels and lands under specific restrictions are not open under the general privilege. General recreation access is not a detector-recovery entitlement.
Official source — lands.wyo.gov · Supporting official source — lands.wyo.gov · Verified
Wyoming
Ordinary local-park access does not establish permission to detect, dig or keep recovered objects. Confirm the current local ordinance, property rule and any excavation/resource restrictions with the actual manager.
Important exceptions: Properties overlapping Reclamation, State Park, federal or other agency land can be governed by the underlying land manager rather than the local recreation operator.
Official source — www.natronacounty-wy.gov · Supporting official source — www.tetoncountywy.gov · Verified
Wyoming
The City of Laramie park rules expressly state “No metal detectors or digging.”
Important exceptions: A separate written authorization from the city would be required to depart from the posted city-park rule.
Official source — www.cityoflaramie.org · Supporting official source — www.cityoflaramie.org · Verified