Recreational Activities- Gathering

Mushroom Gathering

The following information is for reference only. Please talk to someone and find a good book on mushroom gathering before eating mushroom you pick from the wild.

• The most recognizable types of mushrooms on the forest are morels, puff balls, and shaggy manes, also called Inky Caps.
• Pick only one kind at a time. If you do pick more than one type at a time keep them in separate bags.
• Eat only fresh, young, tender mushrooms, free from worm holes and other damage.
• Use a flat, rigid container such as a box or basket.
• Pick the entire fruiting body so that you can positively identify the mushroom
• Know how to reach the nearest poison control center if you suspect mushroom poisoning. Mushroom poisoning symptoms include- cramps, nausea, loss of muscle control, diarrhea and hallucinations.
• There is no permit or license required to collect morels ont eh Huron-Manistee National Forests
• Do not eat wild mushrooms raw.

Prospecting

• Casual/Recreational gold panning is allowed on most National Forest System lands, as long as it is done by hand and does not involve undercutting stream banks.
• The use of sluices and portable dredges is not considered casual.
• To operate sluices or portable dredges requires a prospecting permit from the Bureau of Land Management.
• Because the Eastern United States is not subject to the 1872 Mining Law a claim cannot be filed.
• No permit is required for casual gold panning.

Mineral and Rock Collecting

• In most areas "Rock hounding" does not require special permission or fee payment when done as recreation, and is consistent with local management objectives. To make sure special permission or fee payment is not necessary please contact the District office in the area you wish to "Rock hound" in. Contact Us.
• Forest visitors are welcome to pick up mineral specimens, rock samples, invertebrate fossil casts and molds, geodes, or other earth oddities, and to pan for gold using hand tools.
• Collecting can be done on National Forest System lands where minerals are owned by others, including areas under federal lease, as long as it does not materially interfere with the rights granted to the mineral permittee/lessee.

METAL DETECTION IN THE NATIONAL FORESTS

Thanks you for your inquiry about metal detecting on National Forest System Lands. Forest Service policy does not prohibit the use of metal detectors. However, there are limitations to their use in special areas with National Forests.

A person using a metal detector and excavating the ground even to a shallow depth may unwillingly and innocently destroy a part of our nation's fragile historic and prehistoric past. A series of regulations and laws govern the uses and prohibitions related to metal detectors. These are summarized below.

Secretary of Agriculture Regulation 36 CFR 261.9 prohibits the excavation and/or removal of "any prehistoric, historic, or archaeological resource, structure, site, artifact, or property." This prohibition is mandated by two laws, the 1906 Antiquities Act and the 1979 Archeological Resources Protection Act. Thus, while the use of a metal detector is not prohibited, the excavation and removal of artifacts from national Forests System lands is a prohibited act. A person using a metal detector, therefore, could use the device, but would be in violation of the regulations and the acts if the ground was excavated or an artifact was removed.

Legal activities involving the use of a metal detector might include using the device on a beach or in a recreation area to collect contemporary coins, jewelry, and other metal objects less than 50 years old. Other legitimate activities include 1) using metal detectors for mineral prospects, 2) archeological survey, and 3) searching for treasure trove. These three activities are legitimate only when the individual using the metal detector is covered under a National Forest Special Use Permit. Special Use Permits are given to qualified individuals who apply to individual Forest Supervisors. The issuance of a permit is governed by the 1906 Antiquities Act, the Archeological Resources Protection Act and Secretary of Agriculture Regulations.

In the absence of a Special Use Permit, the 1906 Antiquities Act prohibits not only excavation and removal or objects, but also prohibits surface collecting artifacts more than 50 years old with misdemeanor penalties. The Archeological Resources Protection Act prohibits surface collecting and excavation of artifacts more than 100 years old with the potential for felony penalties.

Our Forest Archeologist, John Davis, is available at 1-800-821-6263 to answer any questions you might have regarding the use of metal detectors. We appreciate your question and your interest in the management of you National Forests.

For more information on any type of gathering, prospecting, or mineral and rock collecting please contact us.