Mike, really nice site... would love to come and do some work on the shakers or whatever.

All the shakin is done by hand, don't really have room to deal with a commercial shaker in the cave. We sift about 2 cubic yards a dig session.

Mike..

On the pictures finally working

YAH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

On the Cave

WOW !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

You got yourself something special there!

Michelle

Yippers.....shuuure do Michelle, knew that from the first moment I laid eyes on it (it was more than puppy love!) It's big enough to hold a country square dance in, or one whale of a party! And,.....it's getting BIGGER all the time!

Well now Mike, it certainly is nice to walk a little ways to one's dig each morning. Wet cold days are certainly not a problem when one digs in a cave. You are daily finding what amounts to lifetime finds for most collectors. There is a certain rush when a fine point comes floating up in the sifter; thank you for sharing.

Thank You Pat, I am keeping a very detailed record of the excavation just for such a story. I am estimating that we have about 2 years left before the site is dug out. Thus far, it has been a teriffic site for certain point types. A corner tang or clovis would really top it off!

Thanks for your comments red man, yessum, I reckon a feller can get kinda spoiled when it's in your back yard. It's funny what a strange relationship one can develope with the sifting tray (it speaks to me frequently!), and It works me hard, but seldom disappoints me. When I dig alone sometimes, I do get an errie sense like someone else is there, but it's never felt like anything threatening, just strange.

Mike that is the best backyard playground that I have ever seen.Keep us informed. Enjoyed talking to you last weekend.
RW

Thanks RW, it's McDonalds playland for big kids in old peoples suites! We enjoy it tremendously. It was great to meet you at the show, enjoyed our conversation.

Hey Mike, I don't do commercial shakers...I'm still oldschool, I want to get my hands dirty and my shoulders to ache from working to find something special.

Lary, we are old school too, and I can appreciate that,but the only reason we don't invite others to dig this one with us is because we use it exclusively to supplement our income living out here, and thus far it's working well. I remember the comment I made to Cindy about it when we First started.....you can't mine gold in Texas, but that doesn't mean you can't find a mine that pays (selling the artifacts).You would be welcome to come out and see it sometime if your in the area, as Frio Landing,Camp Live Oak, and Nachos Pay digs are all within a 1 hr. drive of us.

Well now Mike several years ago a collector/digger friend approached me and said he wanted to dig here on the farm and he said he would give me half of what he found. I showed him a $1000 point and told him that the point weighed 1/2 oz......thats $2000 per oz. At that time gold was selling for about $500 an oz which made the point four times more valuable than gold. I said, "Jimmy if you had a gold mine on your property would you let me come dig and give you half of what I found?" He grinned and said, "nope."

Point well taken red man. Any point that you can actually get $1000. for....may as well be gold. Those points are out there just waiting to be found, but you gotta have a site that has potential for them. I can tell you this much, don't try to get 1K from a dealer, unless the point is worth at least 3K! Every dealer that I know sells from 40% to 60% less than the Overstreet reference, and most think it's a decent book for point types, but many of the value ranges are fantasy. When you own as site and you have a serious operation going on, you have to figure out what all that is costing you too before you open the gates. Best Wishes with your site!

Mike, do you remember when you were a young archaeolgy student and part of your classes had to be hands on? Do you remember the thrill of finding that first point, that you knew you couldn't take home but the thrill of discovery was so nice that you still smile about it? That's the way I am still...I wasn't thinking about taking anything home, just the finding is enough for me and maybe a picture or two. I like the idea of adding to the knowledge that continues to grow...If I can get down this spring, I would like to help out, not for gain but for the thrill of discovery.

Larry, I can certainly respect your comments, as there is wisdom in your words, something I don't see too often. This site was intended to be a source of sustaining us for along time to come, but the fact is it will be dug out soon if I continue at the present rate. My wife is my partner in this, and she is already upset at the rate its going, and what a human mole I am at digging! So others digging remains off limits. A visit and photos would be fine, but unfortunately theres not enough to go around. I am already looking for other sites in our area to get in on.

Mike, do you sell display cases or just artifacts at the shows, I am needing a few. Also, how far do you live from Sanderson?

Yes, I do have some used very nice wooden framed display cases that we are not using anymore, and will bring some to the show. Sanderson would be about a 2&1/2 to 3 hr. drive from our ranch. We are 40 miles NW of Uvalde, and 80 miles NE of Del Rio. Look for Camp Wood on a state map, it's pretty easy to find (Edwards County).