I've been posting on this site for probably 3 years now and don't think I've ever caused a ruckus on the forum, but I feel like I need to let this one out even at the chance of getting booted off the site.

So I went to Rolands this weekend all pumped from what lunkerbrad was saying about the site. I got to the dig at about 0830 on sunday morning after a 3 1/2 drive. I jumped into a hole next to Nate, not sure which one, and started digging. Not five minutes into digging I get a broke marshal. Shortly after, a guy approaches me, who i believe was Roland but had not been properly introduced, and says "oh yeah, you've never been here before, you should dig over here" and points to a spot. Now I said to myself "Self, if you've just pulled out a point from one spot, why would you move from that spot?" I also said to myself "Self, what difference does it make if I've ever been here before or where I dig? Obviously this spot is good enough for Nate so it should be good enough for anyone else". Not wanting to be rude, I move to that spot.

A couple of hours later, everyone has left and I'm the only person digging. I dug till 5pm without a break and had moved a good amount of dirt. During that time, I had come across a root that was too big to cut with anything available. I worked my way around it as best I could. I noticed the root was still alive as it still had red coloring under the top layer and was wet to the touch if the surface was broken. Strangly around that time, I also started seeing crab grass and tree leaves. The leaves were not rotten or frail and did not appear to be that old. I was also deep enough that I did not beleive grass should be present. I'm finding chips here and there but they are also mixed with the grass and leaves. Shortly after noticing these things, the root fell out of the wall into my lap. To my dismay, the root was already cut on both ends. Now I understand that when going to a pay dig there is no guarantee as to what you'll be digging or if you'll come out with any finds. But when I realized I was digging an area that had already been dug, and that I had just wasted 7 hours of driving, a full tank of gas and $40 on the dig, not to mention the sore back, a few choice words were said. I know some people will say that good points have come out of this camp and I don't doubt it. I'm merely describing my own personal experience. I know there's no chance in getting my money back, and whoever is responsible will deny it, but I want others to know what happend to me just to be more informed. This is not to start ruckus and I know the people close to this site and Roland will not be happy, but put yourself in my shoes, how you would feel.

you got to watch out for filled in holes from potholers you should come dig with me I guarante untouched diggins I have been in your shoes and it sux to find beer cans 4ft down in what you thought was untuched

I thought you were doing a private dig?

Chris

Sorry you got the root! Looks like you got into a covered area. Bummer!

Heck happens to us all sometimes . I get luck sometimes even in a old dig hole.. Specually when its one that Hal left.. He can't see very good ya know.. Old as the dirt he is throwing!


-Michelle

Just let me know if your intrested I got a spot for you Chris J

just buttin in did - i hear dig of a lifetime, not already been dug---- my 2 cents

Chris,
sorry you had a bummer hunt, but it happens to ALL of us, most of the time.
One thing for SURE.... you were with the absolute most honest folks you are going to meet in this hobby. Roland would gladly dig FOR you so you could find a point, and it dont get more honest than Lunker and Marcus.
JMO,
but grab a decent wiggle pick and a shovel and GET BACK OUT THERE!!!!! the only way to find em is to move dirt.

gman

chris michelle is correct if you digg enough it will happen to all of us. The first time i dugg ccc richard came out and said i just wasted three hours diggin the top camp where he pushed it all over a few years back. I know now what throw looks like live and learn my friend

Flo-Town, you never called me back

gman

10-4 Flo-town, I agree with you 100%. Just because I've hunted artifacts for over 50 years doesn't mean I know everything and am always willing to learn. Stepping on or putting down people for lack of experience, skill, or tools ain't the way to go in helping them out.

I assure you chris many people dugg there ask nate adams he found ten points there until he hit the layerof dugg dirt i noticed it as well. Everyone had to go thru it id call roland he felt bad already you got lost. And lets not ruin a great weekend on this i can say with complete certainty 70 bucks isnt worth lying to anyone over that whole site will be destroyed before long there is zero point in bing deceptive just my humble opinion. Imsorry your frustrated please keep up the digging and dont let this stop you from having fun

Flo check your email. Lets all stay positive

gman

Chris J Im going to a new dig on saturday my offer still stands land owner wants $20 a day let me know
Claytonkelley@Lycos.com

nate let me know when you go id love to digg with ya before you leave. Im thinkin early thursady!

Thanks Nate. Not sure when I'll be able to go out again, wife and I are trying to buy a house so she's kinda penny pinching. I appreciate the offer and hopefully can take you up on it before you deploy.

Chris J

If the 20 dollars is all that's keeping you, don't worry about it. Just talk to flo, I'll cover your dig.

me too bro twenty aint a thing to make ya feel better let me know i go a lot.

Nate, I think what bothers me most is that I was in a hole that had given me a point right off the bat and then someone says it's in my best interest to move....to a spot that's already been dug! all of these people that have stories of digging in already dug spots, they started that spot on their own without knowing it hd been dug, then told it was a bad spot. Me, I was told I SHOULD go there. Granted I didn't have to go there, but I did on good faith. And what's even more frustrating is I've been to CCC three times, Nachos, TJ's and a few personal digs, and then I've got this goober telling me i've never dug before, not even knowing me. And just cause I left my tools in the trunk, says I came unprepaired. I'm sure he's a good guy to you, but looks like his true light was just shown. As far as Roland, I don't know the guy and honestly don't know what his intention was in pointing me to this spot. Like I said before, with what was said about the camp being a gold mine, what does it matter where I dig? Lunker made it out like they were popping out of every hole, then it turns out, just not mine. I completely understand that this happens, I just think if I had been left to the hole I started in, I woulda been better off.

Man I can't stand it I to have to put my 2cents in . Cris I'm sure sorry you had a bad luck of things , and I my self have many times in my life had had events and things happen to me , that often could of had different results if I only done something different, life is never a sure thing, you go left& get hit by a truck, you go right & win the lottery,some time Life just throws you a curve ball & is not what you exspect. Take from this exsperience & learn from this, next time go with your gut feeling and stay in your hole you picked ,life is about choices and I'm sure next time someone offers you a better hole to dig in , you will remember your bad exsperience and have that in your pocket to draw on to make your choice , good luck in your next digging venture, life goes on .cliff.

Hey, I screen, hand dig, walk plowed fields, creek walk, and snorkel rivers in my pursuit of collecting. I say people choose the methods that adds enjoyment and artifacts to their collecting. Some people might take exception to screening being any less manly than hand digging. Just my opinion.

It's obviously true....Every cloud has a silver lining
Had you not had some unhappines you would never have gotten all that volumous great digging help information...AND...
That invite from Flo is absolutely great...I suggest you jump on the opportunity ASAP
Matter of fact, if thats what it takes for an invite , I think I know a spot that has some cut roots myself

For the rest of the off topic portion of this posting,
You just got caught in a torrential downpour, hang in there, there is no consolation possible but even the
worst tempests blow out and we are left with those little fluffy silver edged clouds again

Not to throw fuel on the fire but.........

Chris..yo man. I was the guy digging beside you and said go shallow in the spot we were in. And Bam..you are there 30 minutes and pull out a sweet marshall base. Thats just how I roll, try to help folks out. Do I really know anything? Hell no, but I am easy to please and I am observant and that means I talk to everyone to make sure I understand what I am doing and where I am digging. I consider it a win if I can go a day and find a single broke, but again thats just because I am laid back like that.

If you had made it out the day before or talked to some of the guys you would know the history of this site and that a portion of it had been screened before. You got there when everyone was dog ass tired and packing up. I would have stayed if it weren't for my first day at my new respectable job (btw, it went great guys!) and the 7 hour drive but you have to talk to folks and get background before you even dive in to the dirt.

Nate Adams was digging in that very spot and I looked over and saw the dirt go really light brown. Snoop noticed it too and 50 seconds later (thats all it takes for Nate to move two cubic feet of dirt ) he hit that root and knew that he was in the portion between the oaks that had been dug.

Roland always says go deep...and for the most part he is right. I just don't think its cool how you put him on blast like this without doing a little homework on your own. The golden rule for me is if you find campstone...work 24 inches above and below it. The site this weekend has so many different campstone levels in the midden..its insane. And the guys digging in the deepest part of the midden pulled out an amazing bell-ish point and Nate went deep deep and pulled an amazing ango. I went top camp and pulled a broke castro drill and broke bucktooth montell (the only one of the trip, hell yeah, woot!)

Every single person out their on Friday and Saturday knew that a big chunk of this camp had been previously dug and yet...we all had a blast and found some amazing pieces and pulled buckets of flint.

I guess I am just disappointed. Before we left, you came back to your car and asked what I thought and I said to go back to where you were at. Why leave a spot you found something in? If the fish are biting, I am not going to move to a new spot..I keep working the area I am in.

You want virgin un-dug, never touched by human hands spots well good luck pal. You dont like that land owners have to clean up their property and that means covering up the massive destruction folks like Nate and I do?

At the end of the day you took the short cut and decided to work a wall that was already made instead of surveying the land and looking around at all the holes and working the areas that hadn't been dug. You gotta think to yourself...why o why was the entire top of that midden left untouched if 20 folks were out digging hours prior. I know you know this isn't easy..but putting folks on blast like that isn't a very community like way handling your biz, especially when all it does is prove how inexperienced you really are.

Friday when we rolled up none of those holes or those walls even existed and look at what we were able to accomplish as a group when working together. Complaining that you feel ripped off for seven hours of digging...seven hours is just a warm up man. If you are sore after that.....well maybe you should take up cross-stitching or something a little less strenuous.

I'm pretty sure that's why it's called Digging, and Not Finding! Been all over this state paying/driving/digging for yrs...you gotta be in to win. You just as easy could have hit an undug pocket and cleaned up. Seems to me after all these yrs, that the diggers with the Best Attitudes find the Most Stuff, Or maybe it's just because they get invited digging more. If you have any worthwhile collection at all, you have a 100 stories just like that, but you gotta keep moving dirt. Somtimes a mound makes you serve your time before your rewarded. Keep trying, if it were easy everyone would have G10's

My advice- find your own private dig site and dig for your self. all this possesive jargon- my dig etc etc is for the birds. people let there heads expand if they think they are in control of a dig. there are over 1,000,000 camps in texas and im sure one has your name on it.

Dude, you followed your gps and it led to you the wrong spot. Not my fault. I had Roscoe hide the dig by putting two feet of crap on the fresh spots to make them look like they had been dug. I kept saying, "dig deeper". I am in and out of this paydig business and I will say try a Nacho dig or do what I and very few people out there are doing which is to go out and spent 50k on some property and dig for yourself. By the way you owe me an adittional 40.00 dollars for staying for the since you only paid for 1/2 day.

I sure had fun and thanks Roland and Lunker for giving me an opportunity to find some flint. I will be back because I can tell you that there is flint dowm at that site. Heck if it is only $50000 for a lot I will take two. Roland contact me!!!!!!!!!!! I bet I charge more than $80 for three days and a Bar BQ. I really do not care if people find something or not it is about being out having fun. Chris I see what what you are saying, heres the BUT, But keep working you will have one of those days that is to be talked about for a long time. Even at my 2 sites we have skunk days and days that we need 2-3 frames to take home the flint. So whens the next HOG DIGG? keep looking down thats were the flint is.

Nate I want a chance to win my $3 back.

I think photo guy sums it up,
Nate as well. As hal said youve had some pretty nice invites dont turn them down. Flo and Nate are very respected at this their knowlage is priceless. And B.T. il be your first customer! Im 1000 percent certain that Roland is a class act and only wants you to have good luck. I heard his concern about you being new and want you to find one. Thanks Roland for the hospitality please dont let this spoil your great thing.

what stinks worse than not finding anything? sitting at home NOT digging.

Lunker,Diggler,Nate,Snoop,ShallowHal,GooseP, All good people. Im glad to know you as friends and diggers

Whatta bout me! It isn't fair.. I've had enought now I want my share... Can't you seeeeeeee....

Bahah!!! Ahh gotta love that 80's music..

I AM ALSO A GOOD DIGGER PS!!!!!!!!!!!

-Michelle

thanks d the feeling is mutual and michelle you certainly rock i hope to meet ya someday this site also rocks!