Tips for detecting old roads/trails.

New England has an abundance of long abandoned trails and roads that go through the woods. I've never had much luck on the trails and roads usually finding modern trash, shot gun shells etc. On one old road however I found a worn matron, 3 indian heads, a v nickel, some wheats, and other oldies. I was wondering where is the best spot to find stuff on old trails. Is it the middle where the wagons went, the edges, areas near stone walls? I've always wondered how much luck people have at these. HH

over the years I've seen many coppers and reals found in old dirt roads , sweep them slowly and because they use to fill in the roads with stones (to keep them from being washed out) the targets can sound very choppy from the heavy mineralized rocks.

I am not certain. Some of those sides by the walls are a few feet higher than the road. People most likely were only in those spots to build the walls and possibly when the roads were too muddy to walk. Horses would be tied up near the houses/homesteads at the hitching post vs along a long rock wall to a field. Most likely people were walking toward the edges of the roads who could drop items. As I figure the people in the carriages wouldn't be dropping the items. They are in/on something where a coin would be caught instead of reaching the ground.

Thanks for the tips Dan and Mango. I'll talk that into account next time I detect along a trail and focus more on the edge. The large cent I found was actually right in the middle of the former road. Must have been dropped by someone on foot. Thanks again!

I like to work the inclines off the center of the road. I find some of my best shoes and knobs there :lol:

Good place too for those numbered spikes that some collect. Take care.

This past saturday I went somewhere the old road still exists. I can't quite mention what it was called on the old map as I only saw two towns with such. The road wasn't really much with stones for some reason, which I am certain they would have wagons go by. It was only a '44 wheat I found, but it wasin the grass on the side about a foot away from the edge of the dirt. And there was some odd thing I found under where a wheel would have traveled. Looks like lead; it was white and falling apart with oxidation, but it was very light.